The Blood Games
by StarrySilence
Summary: Dorothy Salvatore didn't live the conventional life, how could she when she had vampire great-great-great-great granduncles appear in her life regularly. She lived in a supernatural world and tended to ignore the human aspects of her life. She is going to learn the hard way that the supernatural world isn't all fun and games when her favorite Uncle drudges up his past.
1. Meeting Damon

TVD The Blood Games

Disclaimer: The vampire diaries does not belong to me. Only the OC, Dorothy I created belongs to me. I borrowed some of the lines from the flashback portion of the episode Black Hole Sun.

I posted this story on Wattpad too under the same username. I got a positive response there so I thought I post here too. I have this story mostly outlined with how I want it to go. I plan to mess with canon with addition of Dorothy. I hope you all enjoy my writing!

* * *

Chapter 1: Meeting Damon

_April 1994_

Dorothy was in her playroom playing with her dolls when she hears the doorbell ring. A grin grows on her face. A visitor! Dorothy loved when people came over. She wondered if it was one of her parent's friends or maybe a new person. She'd go and see!

"You must be Damon." Dorothy heard her daddy say to someone at the door as she entered the front hall.

"Damon, this Zach Salvatore. He owns the house now, he knows the family history, and I told him if you got out of line, I'd take care of you myself." Cousin Stefan said as he gestured to daddy. He showed up here a few days ago. Daddy said he was just visiting from travelling and that he was her distant cousin. He was very nice but kind of boring.

"Hi Mr. Damon!" Dorothy said inserting herself into the adult conversation.

Mr. Damon who was giving Cousin Stefan an annoyed look, startled. He looked down at her with surprise before he smirked, "Hello there munchkin."

"My names Dorothy!" she corrected him. He laughs. She frowns at him slightly offended but confused by his laughter. "What's so funny?" she asked.

"You've ever seen the Wizard of Oz, kid?" he questioned.

"No, what's that?" she asked, curious.

"An old movie about a girl named Dorothy who ends up in munchkin land because of a hurricane. Your name is Dorothy I called you munchkin" he explained offhandedly.

"Oh, that is funny!" she laughed, getting it now.

He just smirked again. She had a feeling he did that a lot.

"Are you visiting, Mr. Damon?" she inquired.

Mr. Damon opened his mouth to answer but Cousin Stefan cut him off, "He's my older brother, Dorothy. He's a bit of troublemaker but he knows better than to cause any trouble now, right Damon?" he demanded. He looked like he was try to glare holes into Mr. Damon's head. Dorothy frowned not understanding the tension.

"Of course, baby brother like I said I'm here for amends." Mr. Damon responded. He was glaring back at Stefan. The brothers had a stare off before Stefan nodded at her daddy.

"Come in Damon." Daddy said slightly sounding hesitant.

"Thanks" Damon smiled as he walked in.

"Don't make me regret this Damon." Stefan warned.

"You won't." Damon promised.

"Mr. Damon, " Dorothy started but Damon cut her off, "Just Damon, kid."

"Cousin Damon, do you want to play dolls with me?" she implored. She gave him her best puppy dog look.

Both Daddy and Cousin Stefan looked uncomfortable with her question.

Damon gave Stefan a challenging look as he responded, "I'd love to."

Dorothy cheered and grabbed Damon's hand dragging him to her playroom.

* * *

"How old are you kid?" Damon asked her as he made her toy bat fly around his head with his right hand.

"I'm three years and four months!" she said cheerfully, "How old are you?"

"A hundred and fifty-five next month." he stated flatly.

"Really?!" she gasped with wide eyes.

"Nah, I'm twenty-five." he restated smirking.

"That's still old. I bet you'll be a pretty old person. You're really pretty now!" she commented.

Damon raised an eyebrow at her random comment but said "Us Salvatore's have good genes. Too bad they skipped Stefan."

Dorothy gigged, "Cousin Stefan's not ugly! He's just boring."

Damon laugh, "That's so true. You're a smart kid, Munchkin."

"Thanks!" she beamed before she got a contemplative look on her face.

"Say, Cousin Damon what's it like to be an older sibling?" she asked, quietly.

Damon gave her a confused look, "Why do you ask?"

"I'm going to be a big sister. Momma has the baby in her tummy and it's due in August. Stefan is your baby brother. I want to know if my baby sister is going to like me. Does Stefan like you?" she questioned.

"My relationship with Stefan is very complicated, munchkin. There's a lot of bad blood between us. I don't think he likes me much anymore. I don't really like him much either. But we're brothers and we're stuck with each other. If you want advise, I suggest watching out for the selfishness of baby siblings. It will bite you in the ass." he groused.

"What do you mean?" she interrogated.

"We fought over a girl. She was beautiful and striking but because of Stefan, she suffered and I died." he scowled.

"You're not dead. You right here!" she puzzled.

"I got better, sort of." he muttered.

"Your very confusing." she remarked.

"Your just too young to understand, munchkin." he complained and then muttered to himself, "Why am I have a deep conversation with a three year old anyway?"

"I think you lonely." she answered with suddenly too much wisdom for her age.

"What is that supposed to mean?" he asked defensively.

"Why else would you be telling a little girl you just met about your family problems. You should talk to Cousin Stefan." she advised.

Damon stared at her. "What the hell?" he breathed.

"What?" she blinked, the childish gleam in her eyes returning.

"I'm leaving." he stated and left the playroom, ignoring her protests.

* * *

"Hey Stefan, I think Dorothy is possessed or something. She's way too smart for a two year old." Damon said.

"Damon what are you talking about?" Stefan asked sounding baffled.

"You know what, neither mind I just ignore the weird demon child. I'm supposed to be making amends with you. Do you want to help me clean my car?" Damon offered.

* * *

They were outside wiping down his blue Camaro when Damon asked Stefan if he could have a slip of Stefan's drink.

Stefan grins slightly as he says, "Sure."

He hands him the flask. Damon sighs in relief and takes a slip but immediately pulls the flask from his mouth, looking vaguely sick.

"It's good, right?" Stefan questioned, looking pleased with himself.

Damon face is contorting as he tries to not swallow the disgusting tasting blood just yet.

"Oh, yeah. I can't remember if that squirrel was roadkill, or one I caught in the rat trap." Stefan tells him. Damon faces contorts further in disgust.

"Better hope it was roadkill, though, because the rat trap was full of rat droppings." Stefan continues. Damon skin is very pale.

Stefan rubs his fingers and thumb together and tells him, "Swish your tongue around. Does it feel like hair, or is it more of a grainy pellet?" Damon finally manages to swallow it and looks relieved when it's over. Stefan laughs at him and takes the flask back from him and takes a big swig of it. Damon gives him a sarcastic laugh in return. Zach then arrives home with a paper brown bag full of food. He waves at them as he walks up from his car.

"How's it going, Zach? What's up with all the grocery trips?" Damon questions.

"Oh, uh, Gail is craving blueberry pancakes." he answers as he continues his way back into the house most likely going to make those pancakes for his wife.

"You know I can't get over the names. Gail. Dorothy. Dorothy Gale. Was that on purpose? I should ask Gail?" Damon pondered out loud.

"As long as you ask her and not try to compel her. Zach, Gail, and Dorothy are all on vervain." Stefan commented.

Damon gave him a dirty look, "That's just be a waste of compulsion brother."

Stefan just hummed at him.

* * *

"So Damon, I'm sure you had the time to travel to a lot of amazing places. Any stories to share?" Gail asked him as they had dinner that night.

"Well Monterey is pretty nice. Right Stefan?" Damon questioned, with a mean tint in his eyes. He get back at Stefan for making him drink animal blood earlier. Stefan gave him a truly nasty look, "Yes very pretty." he gritted out.

Damon smirked to himself and continued, "But I think New York was pretty great. A lot of people and a lot of food options."

Zach and Gail shifted uncomfortably, Stefan continued to glare.

"What kinds of food?" Dorothy piped up.

"Oh you know pizza, club sandwiches and the like." Damon responded breezily.

"Pepperoni is my favorite!" Dorothy commented happily.

"Mine too, Munchkin," Damon agreed and continued with, "the red meat is delicious!"

Zach wiped his brow nervously. Gail swallowed loudly. Stefan aggressively chewed his dinner.

Dorothy continued to talk to Damon oblivious to how he kept eluding to his vampirism throughout the dinner and later dessert. Damon obliged her finding her ignorance amusing. Plus being nice to her will get brownie points with Zach and Gail and show Stefan that he still had some humanity in him. No matter if his humanity was still turned off. Stefan didn't know that only suspecting it. Damon knew that continuous bringing up his vampire status made them all anxious but he couldn't help it. It was in his nature to poke the bear until it exploded. It was always funny to witness.

* * *

Over the month of April, Damon slowly gained Zach and Gail's trust by being helpful around the house and feeding from blood bags. Plus everyone could see that Dorothy had grown to adore him. He became Cousin Day. She liked him better than Stefan which made Damon feel a little more smug then necessary. Dorothy was very good at bring out Damon's soft side without even trying to. She got him to have a tea party with her for god's sake! Stefan noticed Damon's soft spot toward Dorothy which surprised him. But he'd never seen Damon around kids besides Stefan, himself. Damon had a pretty good big brother before Katherine. It was nice to see that side of him again. Stefan had begun to think that maybe Damon really meant it when he said he want to be brothers again. Stefan was cautiously hopeful.

Damon was annoyed to realize that the munchkin had gotten under his skin. She was still creepily wise for her age. But she kept seeking him out, wanting him to play with her. Damon kept obliging most of the time because she was the first person in a long time to like him better than Stefan. Also she was right he was a bit lonely and children didn't judge. They were blunt and said what they thought which Damon found himself appreciating. Her naive and trusting nature was also nice after dealing with Stefan's constant suspicions. He missed being looked up to. She reminded him of simpler times.


	2. Eclipse Day

TVD The Blood Games

Disclaimer: The vampire diaries does not belong to me. Only the OC, Dorothy I created belongs to me. I once again borrowed some of the lines from the flashback portion of the episode Black Hole Sun.

* * *

Chapter 2: Eclipse Day

_May 10, 1994_

"Cousin Day, did my Daddy tell you that we're having a party for the ellipse. There's gonna be cookies!" Dorothy informed Damon with a big grin on her face as she ran up to him that morning.

"Eclipse," Damon corrected absentmindedly, "Yeah I know, there's gonna be free booze so I'm there. Plus I'll get to meet all the new founding members. I hope this generation is less dickish then the last ones."

"Sheriff Forbes is a really nice lady. You'll like her. Her husband is nice too but boring like Stefan. Dr. Gilbert is doctor which obviously means he's evil. Mrs. Gilbert is really pretty but not as pretty as Momma! Mayor Lockwood is rude. Mrs. Lockwood is nice but Momma says she's a gold digger. There are too many Fell's to talk about. Daddy's says their all butts though!" Dorothy gossiped excitedly.

Just then Zach came into the kitchen and Damon called over to him, "Hey Zach, Munchkin says the Fell's are butts, that true?"

Zach grimaced, "Dorothy I told you not to repeat that."

"You said not to say it to them. I didn't. I told cousin Day, he won't tell!" Dorothy assured her dad as she took a bite of the pancakes that Damon made her.

Damon just shot Zach an amused look.

"She absorbs way too much." Zach mutters to himself as he leaves the kitchen with Gail's chocolate milk.

"Morning Damon, Dorothy." Stefan greeted as he walked into the kitchen and grabbed some of his stored animal blood from the fridge.

"Good morning Stefan!" Dorothy responded with a mouthful of Damon's famed vampire face pancakes.

Stefan gave Damon a look like he did whenever Damon reference their vampirism. Damon just smirked back at him.

"Hey Stefan, you going to the party tonight?" Damon asked casually.

"Yes, Gail and Zach asked me too. It's just casual, thankfully." Stefan answered.

"Yes, god forbid you wear a suit!" Damon mocked. Stefan just rolled his eyes and drank his animal blood from the water bottle.

"I don't blame you cousin Stefan. I don't like wear dresses either." Dorothy empathized.

"Since when?" Damon questioned with an eyebrow raised as he looked at the dress she was wearing now.

"I'll wear a dress when I want to not because I have to!" Dorothy argued petulantly.

"Well said." Stefan agreed raising his drink in a toast.

"You wear dresses?" Dorothy asked cheekily.

"Damon stop teaching her to be smart ass like you." Stefan complained.

"Don't curse in front of the kid Stefan, you want Gail to kick your ass for teaching her daughter swear words?" Damon cautioned.

"Yeah, what he said." Dorothy said agreeing with Damon.

"You two are the worst." Stefan bemoaned but he was smiling.

* * *

The party was in full swing and Damon was bored when he heard Dorothy.

"Cousin Day, come meet Sheriff Forbes!" Dorothy said as she grabbed Damon's hand and began dragging him over to the woman.

"Sheriff this is my cousin Damon," Dorothy said gesturing to him and continued now gesturing to the sheriff, "Cousin Day, this is Sheriff Forbes!"

"It's nice to meet you Damon." Liz Forbes smiled, offering her hand to shake.

Damon took her hand and shook it in greeting, "Pleasures all mine, Sheriff."

"Call me Liz, I'm not on duty now." Liz corrected.

"Sure thing Liz," Damon agreed, "You have a daughter, Caroline right? Munchkin's mentioned her."

"Yes, Caroline is a year and 10 months younger than Dorothy. Gail has arranged play dates between them. It's a sight to witness. Both girls are so excitable. Do you want to see a picture of Caroline?" Liz offers.

"Sure." Damon shrugged. Liz pulled out her wallet out of her purse and pulled out a picture of Caroline in a pink onesie.

"Aunt Liz is breaking out the pictures, I'm leaving!" Dorothy yells and goes to the food table. Damon shakes his head fondly at her and looks at Liz's picture.

"Cute." Damon smiled.

"Thank you" Liz grinned, "Kids are hard work but worth it, don't you agree?"

"I wouldn't know. I'm just cool cousin Damon not a hardworking mom." Damon answered evasively.

"From what I've heard, you'd be a great dad. Pardon the personal question but would you ever want kids of your own?" Liz wonders.

Damon gets an odd expression on his face but before he can answer, Stefan is storming over to him looking angry, "Damon, how could you do that to Gail?!"

"Looks like the jig is up," Damon jokes and then compels Liz, "Hey, look at me. Go home. Forget you ever met us."

As Liz leaves, Stefan grabs Damon by his arm and flashes him into Stefan's room, "How the hell did you feed on Gail? She's on vervain."

"Yeah, in her coffee. I swapped it out weeks ago. Same for Zach." Damon explains.

"Damon these people are our family! They're letting us stay in their home. You can't just treat them like a walking snack whenever you're hungry." Stefan criticized harshly.

"Oh, calm down Stefan. I'm being careful they have no idea. What's the big deal anyway?" Damon dismisses.

"The big deal is that they trusted us to treat them like family not food. Can't you have some respect for human life. You could have killed Gail's baby by depriving her of the nutrients she needs. All because you were too inconsiderate to drink from a blood bag." Stefan argues, angrily.

"Screw you Stefan," Damon sneers, "You think I'd be that careless?"

"I don't know anymore," Stefan yells, "You promised me you'd be better. I thought you were. When you were with Dorothy I saw a side of you that I hadn't seen in a long time. The caring older brother from my childhood. But then you do things like this, uncaring of the consequences of your actions. Have you been faking it this whole time? Is Dorothy just food to you too!?" Stefan asks heatedly.

"You know what Stefan here you preaching at me like your some saint. Your way worse than me with your emotions off! Entire cities are massacred. All I do is snatch, eat, erase. It's the perfect system. Animal blood is nasty and I refused to eat it and you knew that. You knew I was drinking from blood bags but it's not enough to stay satisfied. Vampires need the hunt. You know that, Stefan. So yell at me for acting like a normal vampire not some sad sack with the delusion that he can do normal human things like have a family. Zach, Gail and even Dorothy are all gonna die one day and the Salvatore line will start over with a new generation just like the past hundred years! Their lives don't matter." Damon ranted.

"Cousin Day, Stefan?" a young voice stuttered. Neither brother had realized that Dorothy had entered Stefan's room.

* * *

Dorothy had wondered were cousin Day went. She asked Daddy and he said he saw Stefan and Damon leaving the parlor together. She checked a few places before heading to the bedrooms. The closer she got to Stefan's room the louder the yelling was. The bedrooms were pretty deep in the house and Daddy said they were slightly soundproofed. She didn't think anyone else could hear them.

"-Zach, Gail and even Dorothy are all gonna die one day and the Salvatore line will start over with a new generation just like the past hundred years! Their lives don't matter." Cousin Day was yelling.

"Cousin Day, Stefan?" she stuttered upset at what she just heard.

"Dorothy-" both brothers started before she cut them off, "Damon I thought you liked me? I thought we were friends?" she whimpered.

"Munchkin, shit just-" Damon uttered and zoomed over to her inhumanly fast and looked into her eyes, "Forget what you just heard and go to your room."

"So you did take her off vervain." Stefan remarked quietly as Dorothy did what Damon told her to.

"Stefan, will you just drop it. All I did was feed from them I haven't killed anyone since March." Damon sighed sounding tired with the conversation.

"No I can't." Stefan murmured as he rushed Damon and snapped his neck. He flashed Damon's body out to shed outside.

* * *

Damon groans as he wakes up, he rubs his aching neck and looks up to see Stefan looking down on him from the shed door.

"So, here's what I don't get, Damon. Why'd you bother to charm Gail and Zach? Befriend little Dorothy? Say you want to make amends be a better brother? When you go behind my back on feed on our human family?" Stefan interrogated.

"I really don't get why this has you all bent out of shape. I can control myself. I'm not the ripper Stefan." Damon sassed and moves to get up but gets burned from the daylight pointing through the shed. He hisses in pain.

"You get your daylight ring back when you decide to behave. Now, answer my question: Why did you really come back here?" Stefan demanded.

"Because I missed my brother. I want to have a connection to my humanity, Stefan. I wanted to feel something again. And when I decided to come back home, it all came rushing back, just like I hoped it would." Damon murmured.

"Was it me or Dorothy?" Stefan asked.

"What?" Damon questioned.

"Which one of us caused us to turn your humanity back on? The brother you've tormented for years or the little girl who thinks the world of you and you repay her by feeding from her." Stefan spat.

Damon was silent.

"Yeah, I asked her and she said she didn't mind letting you drink her blood because she loved you. Dorothy looks up to you and you casually manipulate her without even blinking. No child especially as young as her should be subjected to being vampire blood bag, Damon." Stefan passionately stated.

"You're twisting this entire situation in a negative light. You don't understand-" Damon said trying to defended himself but Stefan cut him off, "You're right I don't understand why you would do that to a child."

"Stop saying it like I feed from her daily. I only did it twice!" Damon shouted.

"Twice too many!" Stefan shouted back.

"Look the first time was an accident! She got a paper cut on one of her drawings and she shoved her bloody finger on my lips wanting me to kiss it better like her mom does. I hadn't feed yet and I lost control for a second. A second! I healed her immediately afterwards." Damon explained urgently, "the second time was when she got bit by a copperhead snake outside. I _saved_ her."

"You shouldn't have told her about vampires in the first place." Stefan scolds.

"You're right," Damon agrees, "but damn if she's the only one in this world who doesn't believe the worst of me like you do! I make bad decisions I own up to that. But I'm not as bad as you like to think I am. Look originally I came to Mystic Falls to ask you to go on a road trip with me but I got distracted by Dorothy. I can tell you want me know were near her now and maybe that's for the best. So what do you say do you want to go?"

"No I don't. You just try and turn me into another you. Just looking at the facts, Damon. 1912, you convinced me to drink human blood again, which is why I became a Ripper. In 1942, you almost pushed me off the rails again because you were so damn needy. 1977, you left my best friend to die after I sent her to come help you. And now, you come here. Treat our human family like their toys meant for your amusement. Completely careless about how your actions will affect them in the future." Stefan analyzed.

"I-" Damon started but Stefan cut him off, "you really have no regard for anyone's agency unless they benefit you in some way. Zach and Gail has been nothing but kind and you treat them with no respect. You're ruining Dorothy childhood by introducing the monsters of the world to her. You mock my lifestyle and you treat me with no respect either. I'm sick of it Damon."

"Stefan." Damon muttered not knowing what to say. Stefan placed Damon's ring on the floor and simply said "Leave Mystic Falls, I'm leaving too, this town is better off without us."

Damon stared as Stefan vamped away.

* * *

Stefan was finish up packing when he heard a female scream downstairs. Stefan rushes downstairs to find multiple bodies lying around the living room. Gail was the one who screamed, she looked like she was about to start hyperventilating. Stefan knew this was Damon but he was nowhere to be found. Stefan rushes to help calm Gail down but she wasn't listening and she made herself pass out. He noticed blood running down her legs. Stefan tried very hard not to lose control. Zach finally arrived after hearing Gail's screams. Zach wrestled Gail out of Stefan's arms and rushed her to the car outside. Zach told Stefan to watch Dorothy while he took Gail to the hospital. Stefan nodded and released a shaky breath and zoomed up to Dorothy room. She wasn't there.

"Dorothy! Dorothy! DOROTHY!" Stefan called as he searched the house trying not to panic.

* * *

_April 1994_

"Cousin Day... what are you doing to Daddy?" Dorothy asked hesitantly as she watched Damon biting her Daddy's wrist. He couldn't be hurting Daddy was he? He couldn't be. He was her cousin Day. He was her best friend! Best friends didn't hurt daddy's. Maybe it was an adult thing?

Damon froze and ripped his teeth from Zach's wrist, he compelled Zach to forget what just happened and leave the room then Damon zoomed in front of Dorothy and looked into her eyes, "You will forget what you just saw and go to your room."

"Why would I do that?" Dorothy puzzled.

"Are you on vervain," Damon muttered in disbelief, "Your two years old, how paranoid is Zach for god's sake?"

"What were you doing?" she repeated.

"Nothing you'd understand." Damon dismissed.

"You were biting him. What's confusing about that? I just want to know why?" she insisted.

He looked at her before he said, "I was feeding."

"Feeding?" she repeated.

"Yes I am a vampire so is Stefan." Damon revealed.

"The Halloween monster?" Dorothy questioned.

"Yes- wait what?" he squinted.

"Last year we celebrated Halloween and Daddy dressed me up as a vampire. Momma said it was morbid but Daddy thought it was funny. He said vampires were a monsters and I wanted to be a monster." Dorothy explained.

"Who knew Zach had a sense of humor." Damon mused.

"Wait if you're a vampire doesn't that mean you're old?" Dorothy asked.

"As I told you I'm almost a hundred and fifty-five. I'm not your cousin. I'm your great-great-great-great granduncle. I might be missing a great or two but you get the gist." Damon explained offhandedly.

"That's so cool! I have a vampire godfather instead of a fairy godfather!" she squealed.

"I'm not your godfather. Granduncle and godfather a very different relations." Damon clarified.

"I can't wait to tell Caroline!" she gushed, ignoring Damon's correction.

"You can't tell anyone especially not the sheriff's daughter." Damon said sternly.

"Why?" she whined.

"Because it's a secret." Damon informed.

"Oh okay. My lips are sealed." She promised and happily declared, "you know I thought you were cool before but now you're even cooler!"

"Thanks, munchkin." he smiled.

* * *

_May 10, 1994_

"Uncle Damon, where are we going?" Dorothy asked from her position in the passenger seat of Damon's Camaro.

"Disney World." He responded with a smirk.

"Really?!" she gasped looking excited.

"Yep, we're going on a road trip." He grinned.

* * *

_Mystic Falls Hospital_

"Grayson, are Gail and the baby okay?" Zach asked his fellow founding family member.

"Little Sarah is okay, she's a little on the small side but a few months in the incubator and she'll should be just fine." Grayson reassured.

"What about Gail?" Zach asked again, afraid of the answer.

Grayson hesitated for a moment before saying, "I'm sorry Zach, the birth was very difficult on her. Gail's gone."


	3. The Road Trip

TVD The Blood Games

Disclaimer: The vampire diaries does not belong to me. Only the OC, Dorothy I created belongs to me.

* * *

Chapter 3: The Road Trip

Stefan had no idea what he was going to tell Zach. The man was grieving in the wake of his wife's death and he had an infant daughter to take care of. He seemed to be hyper focused on Sarah and hadn't yet asked about Dorothy. But first things first Stefan needed to get rid of the dead bodies.

They were everywhere. The entire ground floor was filled with the dead. It was very serial killer-esque and seemed to be mocking Stefan's control issues as they all were in pieces and then put back together. He had no idea where Damon had time to kill this many people in the short period of time between Stefan returning his ring and Stefan packing his own belongings. He really hated when Damon got passive aggressive, he preferred all out aggression at least then he'd know what to expect.

Maybe it was time to call Lexi, she'd know what to do.

* * *

_Meanwhile in Damon's car_

Damon sings along in the most ridiculous manner possible to the chorus part of the Nirvana song _In Bloom_ which Dorothy finds highly entertaining. Dorothy having memorized one line thanks to Damon, pipes in at the correct intervals with much enthusiasm. Damon enters the last verse and pitches his voice deeply as he says the chorus for the last time and than points at Dorothy and she says her line and then Damon finishes the song with much gusto.

Dorothy bursts into giggles and claps, "That was fun, Uncle Damon!" she cheers, "Let's do it again!" she continues.

"Hold that thought, munchkin all that singing has left me parched. There's an McDonald's. I'll get you the kids meal to snack on and I'll grab a customer." Damon decided as he notices the fast food restaurant coming up ahead on the right, he turns off the road and enters the McDonald's parking lot. Damon parks near the back but before he gets out of the car, he turns to Dorothy and looks into her eyes, "You won't leave my side without asking me if it's okay first." He compels.

Dorothy blinks before she scowls, "No fair! You can't compel me to do stuff. I'm friend not food!"

Damon bristles slightly, her words reminding him of his argument with Stefan. He glares at her, "It's for your own safety." He retorts.

"How?" she demands.

"You tend to get distracted and wander off, this isn't the boarding house. It'll be harder to find you if you do this here." Damon explains with more patience than he remembers having.

"Fine but I want ice cream!" she demands.

"Don't be a brat," Damon chastises.

"Can I please have ice cream?" she corrects herself.

"Of course you can, I'm cool Uncle Damon remember?" Damon relents easily.

"Woo!" she celebrates.

* * *

"Uncle Damon, how far away is Disney World?" Dorothy asked with a mouthful of ice cream.

"It's in Florida. We are in Virginia still. We still have three states to get through." Damon answers as he ate his own vanilla ice cream.

"That's far?" she checks.

"Over seven hundred miles, so yes." He responds sarcastically.

"That is a big number!" she gasped, "how long will it take to get there?"

"A little over 10 hours maybe." Damon shrugs.

"That's forever!" she says stunned.

"It's really not." He denies but after living for over hundred years, his concept of a longtime has changed and Dorothy was still a young human child.

"I don't think I've ever gone that long without seeing Momma and Daddy." She mused.

"Eh, who needs parents? Complete buzz kills." Damon dismisses her words.

Dorothy frowns at him, "Momma and Daddy aren't boring. They always play with me!"

"That'll change when you get older." Damon mutters under his breath and continues in a normal voice, "Never mind, wait here while a grab my special drink." He gets up from the booth and heads over to a woman sitting by herself. Dorothy looks after him with a put out look on her face at his earlier comments.

* * *

"Do you like being a vampire?" Dorothy asked as the pull away from the McDonald's after Damon has fed.

"It has its moments." He answers evasively.

"Can I be a vampire?" she implores with an innocent look on her face.

"Nope you're too young, do you want to be a kid forever? No you don't." he denies immediately.

"What about when I'm older?" she badgers further.

"Why do you want to be one, munchkin?" he asks instead of answering.

"I want to be like you!" she smiles and continues saying, "I want to be cool and be able to protect you like you protect me. Plus I could protect Momma and Daddy and baby Sarah when she arrives!"

"I'm not a protector Dorothy." He argues sounding off.

"Yes you are!" she retorts passionately, "You told me how you always looked after Uncle Stefan when you were kids and how you want to save Miss. Katherine! You protected me from getting hurt from the mean snake! We're the Salvatore's. Daddy told me that in Italian it means savior!"

"Doesn't mean shit." He bites out as she unintentionally opens up old wounds of the past. His mother had thought that when he was very young before she realized what an asshole his father was and she died alone because he didn't want to see her die. You don't save others you save yourself. Giuseppe Salvatore taught him that lesson.

"You're wrong." She says stubbornly.

"Over hundred years of experiences says otherwise." Damon responds.

"I'll show you," she tells him, "I'll be an awesome savior when I grow up!"

* * *

"Let me get this straight," Lexi says, "Damon came here last month claiming he wanted to make amends with you. He wouldn't drink animal blood but he did promise to stick to blood bags. He charmed Gail and Zach. He befriended the two year old Dorothy Salvatore, showing the older brother side of him that you thought died a long time ago. You two were getting along. Still being assholes to each other but in a playful way like normal brothers. But you found out that he was manipulating your human family into being his own personal walking blood bags. You confronted him. You two yelled at each other and you told him that you two should leave Mystic Falls and go separate ways, is that right?" Lexi asks wanting confirmation. Stefan nods.

"And then you're going up stairs to pack it takes you maybe 30 minutes when you hear Gail scream and you find a bunch of dead bodies styled to look like it was your handiwork. Gail has to be rushed to the hospital because the stress caused her to go into premature labor. Gail dies. The baby is fine. Zach is barely holding on focusing all his attention on Sarah that he hasn't asked about Dorothy or Damon. Both whom are missing?" she finishes, an eyebrow raised. Stefan nods again.

"Jeez Stefan why don't you get a witch to track them? All their stuff is still here." She questions looking at him with a pitying expression.

"Why didn't I think of that?" Stefan says as he face palms.

"You look very stressed Stefan I don't blame you. You should have called me sooner. I would have loved to see Damon in a princess crown." Lexi mused out loud.

"I guess I'll go asked Sheila Bennett. She's not going to be happy with me. She warned me not to trust Damon's intentions." Stefan grimaced.

"Don't worry I'll go with you, hold your hand." Lexi teased. Stefan gave her a look.

* * *

"Stefan Salvatore you are a fool." Sheila Bennett states.

"I know." He sighs.

"No you don't. Damon didn't just come here for you. He came here for Katherine!" Sheila informs heatedly.

"Katherine's dead." Stefan told her.

"She's desiccated there's a difference." Sheila sasses.

"What- how... The tomb? Emily?" he exclaims in shock.

"Yes Emily Bennett cut a deal with Damon. He'd protect the Bennett line and she'd save Katherine. Emily also unfortunately saved the other vampires with Katherine. After finding out about the eclipse Damon came to me and asks if I could harness it's power to open the tomb and free Katherine. I told him I couldn't. That I needed the comet that Emily used. I was lying through my teeth but Damon believed me. Damon didn't keep his side of the bargain. Also why would I help him unleash a bunch of vampires on my town?" Sheila rants.

"That's... insane." Stefan processed.

"I can't say I'm too terribly surprised. Damon is obsessed with Katherine." Lexi comments.

"I'm just telling you that your brother never had pure intentions for his return. But if Dorothy is safe with him. I can't tell. Damon's version of safe and mine seem vastly different." Sheila remarks and continues saying, "I'll help you find them, give me some of your blood Stefan."

Stefan bites into his wrist and pours it into the bowl Sheila hands him. She does the locator spell using an U.S.A map and tells them that Damon was in North Carolina.

* * *

"Charlotte, North Carolina." Damon announces.

"I thought we were going to Disney World?" Dorothy complains, childishly.

"Two states to go but I wanted to show you something." Damon explains, "Back when I was human, I fought in the Civil War for the South. I don't like war. Men in power fighting claiming to fight about one thing when it's really about something else. It's just a mess and traumatizing. I did some truly terrible things."

"I killed an innocent family." Damon admits for the first time, to anyone.

"Why?" Dorothy whispered sensing the tension in the air.

"Because I was scared." Damon tells her quietly.

"You, scared?" Dorothy gasps looking surprised.

"I'm not that great, Dorothy," Damon informs, "I don't want you to want to be like me. I don't want anyone to be like me."

"But you're Uncle Damon!" Dorothy protests confused, "I love you! I don't care about that stuff."

"You don't get it." Damon sighs, "Let's just go."

* * *

Damon looked out at the road blankly as he kept driving toward Florida. He glanced at a sleeping Dorothy. The damn kid, she's too young to deal with his bullshit. Stefan's right. He kept forgetting just how young she was. He shouldn't have took her from her parents.

But Stefan hurt him. Damon left him with a mess to clean to distract him so he could take Dorothy and go on the road trip with her that Stefan rejected. Dorothy liked him while Stefan didn't. But she was a kid and didn't fully understand right and wrong yet. Damon took advantage of that. He used Dorothy to make himself feel better, as a substitute for Stefan. The unconditional love of a child was the best feeling that Damon missed from a young child Stefan but Damon knew he didn't deserve that kind of love anymore. When Dorothy grew up she'd hate him as much as Stefan does. It was inevitable but Damon did love to tempt fate.

The eclipse made him wonder if Sheila could use its power to open the tomb so he could be reunited with Katherine. He wouldn't have family but at least he'd have Katherine but Sheila had said it wouldn't work and Damon believed her, not thinking Sheila would lie when her daughter's life was threatened.

Fifteen years and the comet would return and then he'd have Katherine. He wouldn't be alone anymore.

For now though, he'd enjoy the time he had of Dorothy idolization.

* * *

_May 11, 1994 (8:00 am)_

"Munchkin, wake up we're here." Damon said as he nudged Dorothy from her slumber.

"Ugh." Dorothy groaned as she slowly woke up and registered what Damon said to her.

"DISNEY WORLD!" Dorothy shrieked excitedly, causing Damon to grimace at her pitch volume.

"Come on." Damon urged as he got out of the car, Dorothy followed him eagerly.

* * *

"Sheila says that they're now at Disney World." Stefan states in disbelief. Lexi raises an eyebrow and hums.

"Who knew that Damon would be so good with kids?" Lexi muses as she jumped back on Stefan's motorcycle and wrapped her arms around his waist. Stefan revved the engine and they we're off again.

* * *

Dorothy was in heaven as she dragged her uncle Damon on all the rides and ate her cotton candy and slushy. Uncle Damon had compelled them entrance into the park. He also compelled one of the employee to give her a Bambi stuffed animal at the gift shop. She had told him how Bambi was her favorite Disney character.

She shrieked in delight as Uncle Damon caused the teacup to spin like crazy. Uncle Damon was grinning wickedly as he did so. "Spin faster, faster, faster." She chanted. Damon obliged her. She loved the teacups ride! It was now her favorite.

"Miss. Minnie can I have a picture with you?" Dorothy asked with a bright smile.

"Of course!" the Minnie Mouse answered with the signature tinkering laugh. The character wrapped an arm around Dorothy's shoulders and looked at the cameraman. They took a few photos with Dorothy dragging Damon into a few. The cameraman even took a few off just Damon and Dorothy without being asked.

Dorothy standing between Minnie and Damon as she held their hands with a bright smile.

Minnie looking bashful while a smirking Damon had an arm around her waist and Dorothy holding Damon's free hand with a smile.

A cocky Damon giving Dorothy a piggy back ride to both a shocked Minnie and a gleeful Dorothy.

Dorothy with a bright grin on Damon's shoulders making a double peace sign with Damon smirking.

Dorothy still on his shoulders giving him a sloppy cheek kiss while Damon smiled.

A blurry photo of Dorothy being grabbed by Lexi and Stefan tackling Damon.

* * *

"Damon what the hell do you think you're doing?!" Stefan demanded to know as he dragged Damon toward the restrooms.

"Going on that road trip, what else?" he answers flippantly.

"You can't just take Dorothy three states over when you please, Damon. Do you even realize what your actions have caused?!" Stefan demanded to know.

"Relax, I was going to take her back." Damon brushed off.

"Gail is dead, Damon!" Stefan shouted. Damon froze.

"What? How?" Damon demanded as soon as he regained his bearings.

"The dead bodies scared her, Damon! She went into premature labor! She died from blood loss when giving birth. Sarah survived but Zach is a wreck. He's so out of it that he hasn't even thought to ask about you or Dorothy or why there were dead bodies in the house in the first place!" Stefan explained angrily.

"This isn't my fault." Damon denies.

"Yes it is, you always ruin everything! Dorothy has lost her mother! You are ruining her childhood!" Stefan berated.

"Don't tell her yet." Damon begged, "Let her have today. Before you make her hate me."

"Fine but only because I don't want to ruin Disney World for her." Stefan agrees reluctantly.

* * *

"Who are you?" Dorothy asked as she tried to wrestle out of Lexi's arms.

"I'm Lexi, Stefan's friend." Lexi reassured her.

"Prove it." she demanded.

"How?" Lexi questioned, confused.

"What did Uncle Damon do to you in New York?" Dorothy interrogated.

"Left me to burn." Lexi said bitterly.

"So you are Lexi, hello Lexi." Dorothy said relaxing.

"Damon told you about that?" Lexi asks in disbelief.

"Uncle Damon tells me everything." Dorothy boosts smugly.

"You poor kid." Lexi muttered, pitying that Dorothy's idol was about to break her heart when he told her what his actions caused.

"Why are you here?" Dorothy inquires, curiously.

"Your dad is worried about you, you left without telling him." Lexi gently chastises.

"I didn't mean to make him worry," Dorothy frowns and continues saying, "but he shouldn't worry I'm with Uncle Damon he'd never hurt me."

Lexi just shakes her head, "Not on purpose maybe." she murmurs.

* * *

"Lexi." Damon greets her as Stefan takes Dorothy to get more cotton candy.

"Damon." she returns.

"Coming to Stefan's aide like always?" he mocks.

"Are your emotions on or not?" Lexi asks bluntly.

"Yes they are." Damon informs briskly.

"I'm not sure. See I thought they were when we were together but you fooled me." Lexi says and continues saying, "I don't know why you'd hang around a little girl if your emotions are still off. If she serves some kind of purpose for you. But if you do what you did to me to her. I'll kill you myself no matter what Stefan feels." she threatens.

"You really hate me." Damon observes.

"Can you blame me?" she asks rhetorically.

"No matter what you think. I'd never hurt Dorothy." Damon says simply.

"Never say never Damon." Lexi warns.

"I won't." Damon insists firmly, he has to believe that.

* * *

"Uncle Stefan, is Daddy really worried?" she asks him quietly as they waited in line for the cotton candy.

"Yes, what you did was irresponsible and dangerous." Stefan tells her only lying slightly, he firmly believes Zach would be worried if he realized she was missing.

"I was with Uncle Damon, the safest place I could be." Dorothy says.

"It breaks my heart that you believe that." Stefan mutters.

"Uncle Damon is a vampire he could protect me from anything!" Dorothy insists passionately.

"Dorothy, why do you like Damon?" Stefan asks her slightly desperate to understand.

"Because he's Damon." she says simply.

* * *

Author's note: Originally on Wattpad I had used the lyrics for the song but I know that this site doesn't like that so I removed the words. Better safe then sorry.


	4. To be a Savior

TVD The Blood Games

Disclaimer: The vampire diaries does not belong to me. Only the OC, Dorothy I created belongs to me.

* * *

Chapter 4: To be a Savior

"Hello Sarah." Zach says softly as he looked at his newborn daughter inside the incubator trying his hardest not to break down after receiving the news of Gail's death.

Grayson had offered the information for a professional grief counselor but Zach wasn't the kind of person who was comfortable talking about his problems with strangers. Grayson had also promised that he and Miranda would always be a phone call away if he ever needed any help with the girls. He couldn't really process it.

For now Zach needed to make sure Sarah was okay. He'd stay with her until she could leave the hospital. Gail… he'd deal with Gail later. He just…couldn't right now. Sarah _needed_ him, he'd stay with her. He didn't realize that he had tears falling down his cheeks as he did so.

* * *

He kept just staring at Sarah when she gave him a gummy smile and he just _lost_ it and started sobbing in earnest, the reality of his loss really hitting him. Gail would never see that smile.

Zach didn't register when he was no longer alone until he heard Stefan ask in panic, "Zach what do need?!"

Zach couldn't speak in between his gut wrenching wails. Stefan just looked on him in distress for a few moments before he drew Zach into a terribly awkward hug, trying his best to comfort him. Zach's own cries upset Sarah was cried alongside her father not understanding why he was upset but sensing it and it upset her as well. Eventually Zach stopped and step up out of Stefan's hug and went to sooth Sarah. It was difficult as Zach was still devastated but he managed to get her to sleep.

"Zach?" Stefan asked quietly, scared off spooking the man.

"Gail is…." Zach released a shaky breath before continuing, "…she's gone."

"I know, I'm so sorry" Stefan says sounding wrecked. Zach didn't says anything back to that.

"Sarah needs me Stefan, I can't let Gail down." Zach says urgently.

"What about Dorothy?" Stefan asks cautiously but Zach doesn't seem to hear him as he just keeps looking at Sarah with a protect look on his face.

"I'll always protect you, Sarah." Zach whispers to himself.

"Zach?" Stefan prods.

Zach doesn't acknowledge him again.

* * *

"Daddy?" a young voice whispers.

Zach startles violently thinking it was Sarah who had spoken which he logically knew was impossible as she was just born two days ago but she was sleeping.

"Daddy?" he was asked again.

Zach looks behind himself and sees Dorothy, he's eldest child standing in the doorway to the hospital room, Stefan was next to her.

"Dorothy." He croaked out. He hadn't spoken since his last conversation with Stefan, "Come meet Sarah." He urges.

Dorothy cautious walks over to him, "Daddy you look scary." She says sounding slightly frightened.

Zach had no idea what he looked like but he knows he's barely slept since Sarah was born and he hasn't showered either. He's unsure if he's even eaten, he thinks Grayson came by a few times but he couldn't recall.

"I'm sorry," he says instinctively, "Daddy's fine. Come meet your little sister." He repeats again.

Dorothy gives him a dubious look but come over and looks into the incubator at Sarah, "She so tiny!" she gasps.

"Yes, " Zach agrees and continues saying "she is very fragile so I need to be a good big sister, okay? Protect her. It's what mommy would want."

"Where is Momma?" Dorothy questions innocently.

"Dead." Zach answers callously.

Dorothy recoils from him, "W-what?" she stutters.

Stefan finally speaks, "Zach what are you doing?"

"You're momma died. She's looking down on us now and we cannot disappoint her. We have to protect Sarah, okay?" Zach insists reverently.

"Momma dead?" Dorothy whimpers.

"Yes." Zach says impatiently, "We're saviors, Dorothy we need to protect Sarah!" he yells sounding deranged.

Dorothy flinches back from him looking scared and confused. Stefan drags her out of the room and yells for a nurse while Zach keeps going on and on about protecting Sarah and living up to their surname about how that is what Gail would want and they needed to respect that. Zach so worked up into a frenzy that he could even hear Sarah being woken up from her sleep and that she started crying again.

Zach was sedated.

* * *

Dorothy was crying upstairs in her room while Lexi did her best to comfort her.

Stefan stared at Damon, "Do you see what you actions have caused?" he asked.

"I didn't want this to happen Stefan." Damon answers and continues insisting, "the bodies were just a distraction so I could borrow Dorothy for the road trip that_ you_ rejected."

"Are you saying this is my fault?" Stefan asks in disbelief.

"I never would have left the bodies if you had just agreed." Damon claims as he crosses his arms across his chest.

Lexi suddenly flashes down stares and says, "Do not listen to him, Stefan this is his fault he just doesn't want to own up to the fact he got Dorothy mother killed and caused her father to have mental break down."

"Why are you here, you are supposed to be comforting Dorothy." Damon bites out.

"She's your great niece, why don't you do it?" Lexi retorts.

"You're the girl." Damon points out rudely. Lexi just looks at him with an eyebrow raised as Dorothy cries were still heard upstairs. Stefan shifts uncomfortably and says, "Maybe I should-?"

"No." Lexi and Damon say in unison.

"I'll go." Damon huffs.

* * *

"Munchkin?" Damon mutters as she walks into her room and sees all her sobbing on her pale pink bedspread. He sighs uncomfortably and goes over to her and she immediately launches herself in his arms and gets snot and tears all over his shirt. He rubs her back not knowing what else to do.

"Momma gone." she eventually manages to choke out.

"I know," Damon says looking at her hopelessly.

"She can't be." Dorothy whimpers and continues crying, "Momma's don't die. They're Momma!"

"What do you want me to do?" he asks desperately.

"I want Momma!" she wails and continues asking, "You can save her, can't you Uncle Damon?"

"I can't." Damon answers apologetically.

"But you're a vampire!" Dorothy argues not understanding.

"I can't save someone whose already dead. She didn't have any vampire blood in her system…" Damon started before his eyes widen, "she did have my blood in her system!" Damon realizes remembering the last time he fed on her, he gave her some of his blood after she told him she felt drowsy. Stefan and Lexi appear upstairs after hearing that.

"Are you saying, Gail may be a vampire?" Stefan questions with rising hope.

"But it's been two days you think if she was a vampire she'd have shown up by now? She may have not known she need to drink from someone to complete the transition and died again." Lexi couldn't help but mention.

"Let go see her body, Stefan. Lexi stay with Dorothy." Damon determines.

* * *

"What do you mean, we can't see her body?" Damon demands.

"I'm sorry but her body is still undergoing preparations for the funeral." Grayson says.

"Let us see Gail's body." Damon compels.

"I can't." Grayson answers stoically.

"Why." Damon compels again.

"She became a vampire after feeding on the mortician and I used to rest of my vervain supply to subdue her and gave her to the Augustine Society." Grayson tells him.

"What?" Damon growls dangerously.

Grayson blinks as he is no longer being compelled and he glares at Damon hissing, "You're a vampire?! How dare you leech off Zach and his family! What have you done to poor Dorothy?!" Grayson takes the pencil from his coat pocket and goes to stab Damon.

Damon moves to kill him before he can but Stefan stops them both and tells Damon, "Wait Damon, you can't kill a founding family member that will be noticed! Calm down and keep compelling the answers out of him."

Damon vampire face comes out because he's so furious but he knows that Stefan is right. He forces himself to calm down and looks at Grayson in the eyes, "Where exactly is Gail?" he compels.

"Whitmore College in the underground basement in one of the cells." Grayson is forced to answer.

"How do I find this underground basement?" Damon interrogates further.

"The entrance is behind the electoral room. You have to pull the red lever." Grayson informs.

"What is this, Scooby Doo?" Damon scoffs to his brother. Stefan looks equally unimpressed.

"Any security measures?" Damon continues.

"Yes, we had a witch decades ago set booby traps that only a vampire would set off." Grayson tells him.

"Anyway around that?" Damon asks.

"I don't know." Grayson admits.

"Forget this encounter better yet forget the existence of Damon and Stefan Salvatore." Damon finishes.

* * *

Stefan calls Lexi and informs her of what they discovered, she reluctantly agrees to stay back and continue watching Dorothy but warns him if they're not back in two days she's going to look for them.

* * *

"Why did this Augustine Society do to piss you off so much?" Stefan questions his brother from the passenger side of Damon's Camaro.

"None of your business." Damon snips as he drives them up to Whitmore.

"I assume you've crossed path with them before, just tell me what I'm walking into, Damon." Stefan badgered.

"Hell." Damon states flatly.

Stefan gives him a look of concern, "What does that mean?" he asks.

"Hell, what's so confusing about that?" Damon growls.

"Damon." Stefan says quietly.

"The Augustine society are a bunch of sadistic fucks," Damon spits out angrily, "they capture vampires and torture them, trying to figure out ways to use us to benefit and improve humanity."

"When was this?" Stefan demands.

"Oh you're concerned now, huh Saint Stefan." Damon antagonizes.

"Damon, _when_?" Stefan emphasizes.

"Good old Joseph. Such a nice guy." Damon sasses.

"1953," Stefan mutters to himself, "when you killed Joseph Salvatore. I thought you killed him for no reason. But… he sold you out to this Augustine Society, didn't he?" Stefan concludes.

"Yep, it was supposed to be the both of us but you were late." Damon laments falsely.

"Oh my god, _how long_?" Stefan demands.

"Now you care?" Damon sneers.

"Answer me!" Stefan hisses.

"Four years." Damon responds flatly.

"No." Stefan whispers horrified.

"Yes." Damon says feeling vindicated.

"I'm so sorry Damon." Stefan apologizes sounding like he truly means it.

"Too fucking late." Damon snarls, still bitter that Stefan never came for him.

The rest of the ride to Whitmore is silent.

* * *

They couldn't enter the campus doors.

"We need to be invited in to a public university, are you serious?" Damon rages.

"We will have to find out who owns it." Stefan groaned in irritation.

"Probably Aaron and Ashley Whitmore." Damon answers shocking Stefan.

"Who?" Stefan questions.

"Relatives of Dr. Wacko, I made the effort to learn more about that sadistic bastard after I got free." Damon explains offhandedly.

"Do you know where they live?" Stefan asks.

"Yes." Damon smirks dangerously.

* * *

The Whitmore's apparently live a little ways away from the main campuses. Damon has Stefan knock on the Whitmore's door. A blonde man who looks to be in his late twenties answers the door.

"Can I help you?" he asks.

"Yes I'm looking for Aaron Whitmore. Are you him?" Stefan inquires politely.

"Yes?" Aaron asks looking confused and slightly suspicious.

"My name is Stefan Salvatore. Your relative Dr. James Whitmore who fought in World War II correct?" Stefan questions.

"Yes he was my grandfather. What about him?" Aaron puzzles.

"You see my grandfather Damon knew him and he wanted me to meet the family of he man who changed his life." Stefan smiled.

"He saved him?" Aaron assumed, smiling back.

"Yes saved him from infection in the trenches." Stefan lied.

"Grandad always loved to help people." Aaron commented, "he wrote a journal of his time in the war but it never mentioned a Damon."

"That'd be me." Damon grinned darkly as she darted past his brother and dragged Aaron outside who had let himself lean too much outside his door.

"You see your granddad was not a very nice man and I have made it my life mission to make every family member of his suffer for what he did. Those mysterious murders throughout the history in your family those were me." Damon informed as he let his vampire face show.

Aaron paled and breathed out, "You're a vampire."

"In the flesh." Damon said grinning savagely, "you see I've kept tabs on your family and I know for a fact you have a son who's only three years old. It be a shame if something happened to little Aaron the IV, wouldn't it?"

* * *

"Damon, what are we going to do about the booby traps?" Stefan asks quietly as they walk through the hall of the Whitmore campus heading toward the electoral room.

"While you called Lexi, I called a witch friend of mine." Damon answered.

"Who?" Stefan puzzles.

"Her." Damon says as he points at a black woman up ahead.

"You must be Stefan." The woman greets with a smile, "I'm a friend of Lexi and unfortunately Damon as well."

"Bree, we got a distant in-law to save get on with the magic juju." Damon butted in.

Bree scowled at him, "The only reason I'm helping you is because Lexi asked not you."

"Whatever, just undo the spell." Damon badgered.

"I already did you thankless prick." Bree snapped.

"Thank you Bree you don't have to stay, it's gonna be dangerous." Stefan warns.

"Lexi asked me to have your backs so I will. I owe her." Bree says simply.

"Let's just go already." Damon complained as he walked into the open doorway into a dark tunnel which he assumed lead down to the Augustine headquarters. Stefan and Bree followed him.

* * *

When they eventually got down to the cells, a voice called out saying, "Hello Damon, you finally come back for me, old friend?"

Damon froze.


	5. A Familiar Face

TVD The Blood Games

Disclaimer: The vampire diaries does not belong to me. Only the OC, Dorothy I created belongs to me. I borrowed some lines from the episode Fifty shades of Grayson.

* * *

Chapter 5: Familiar Faces

"Enzo." Damon says in disbelief.

"That's my name, don't wear it out." Enzo joked.

"Is there a woman named Gail here?" Damon asks him as he disregards his shock and gets back to the task at hand.

"That's your first question for me? Not "How are you? How'd you survive in that fire I left you to die in?" Enzo asks insulted.

"Who the hell is this?" Stefan demands to know looking at Damon.

"Lorenzo St. John but my friends call me Enzo. Kidding I don't have any friends." Enzo chuckled.

"He was my cellmate. Doesn't matter but seriously Enzo have you seen a woman named Gail?" Damon asks again.

"I'm not telling you anything until you all hear my story. I've been waiting fifty years to tell it and you're all going to listen." Enzo insisted annoyed at Damon's lack of reaction to him.

"So there I was fighting in the Second World War when I'm injured-" Enzo started but Damon cut him off, "I already know this."

"But Broody here and Gorgeous do not. I'm giving context Damon, so shut it." Enzo snapped and continuing saying, "Where was I? Ah yes so I was injured and the volunteer American physician Dr. Whitmore noticed my unnatural healing rate. In his own deranged little mind he decided to fake my death and sent me back to America with him so he could experiment on me and discover my secrets. Dr. Whitmore was not fazed by the fact I looked human and treated me no better than one would treat a lab rat. You remember right, Damon?" Enzo grinned with all his teeth.

Damon just glared, "We don't have time to listen to this." He gripped.

"Make time!" Enzo screamed startling the three of them.

"Continue Enzo." Bree says politely.

"Thank you Gorgeous," Enzo smiled and continued his story, "I was alone for ten years before Damon arrived having been sold out by a human relative. We became good friends as we decided to work together to escape. We came up with a plan. Where one of us would drink the others blood rations to gain strength and breaks us both out. We did rock paper scissors. Damon won. Eventually he got strong enough that he was able to escape at the good doctor's New Year's eve's party where he liked to show us off like exotic pets. Damon ripped his eyeballs out of their sockets which I got to say was very satisfying to watch and drained him but accidentally knocked over some decorative candles and set the room on fire when he went to free me, we realized the cell bars were coated in vervain so Damon couldn't open them. Damon looked me dead in the eyes and then turned his back on me leaving me to burn. Unfortunately I survived because of one of the scientists and was forced to continue being the Augustine's lab rat for the next thirty years. Until you all showed up that is because you are letting me out now." Enzo concluded brightly.

"Of course." Bree agreed, "as soon as you tell us where Gail is."

"Let me out first." Enzo bargained.

"Tell us were Gail is." Stefan glared.

"Let. me. out." Enzo growled lowly.

"Gail." Damon said simply not fazed at Enzo fluctuating moods.

"Damon." Enzo hissed.

"Gail." Damon repeated.

"Damon?!" a female voice answered from deeper in the tunnel.

"Gail we're here to rescue you!" Stefan answered.

"Stefan?" Gail whimpered sounding like she was crying.

"Stefan, Bree go get Gail. I have something to say to Enzo and then I'll catch up." Damon instructed.

Stefan looked like he wanted to protest but Bree shushed him and dragged him after her as she went deeper in the tunnel leaving Damon and Enzo alone.

"You told me your side of the story so I'm going to tell you mine. I left you and I never looked back because in order for me to save myself and leave you, I had to shut off my humanity, so I flipped the switch, and then I felt nothing, no remorse, no regret, no pain." Damon laments bitterly.

"And what I'm supposed to forgive you because you had your switch off? Even if I forgave you, Damon, would that make you less of a horrible person?" Enzo asks rhetorically.

"We're even, Enzo." Damon states as he opens the cell door.

"You know you were the most important person in my life, and you ruined me, but that's just who you are, that's who you'll always be...a monster." Enzo muses aloud and then flashes out of the tunnel and most likely out of Whitmore.

* * *

"Watch out!" Gail screams as Stefan runs into a medical looking room and gets hit by a dart filled with something that makes him start to desiccate rapidly. Bree moves to attack the man behind the attack and manages to easily defeat him without any effort. After all he was prepared for vampires not witches.

Damon arrives and is not happy to see the state his brother is in, "Feed him your blood, Bree!" he orders her.

"If I do that he'll fall back off the wagon." Bree argues.

"Lexi around, she'll fix him." Damon says rolling his eyes.

"Just wait until we can get him an animal. He's just desiccated not dead. He'll survive until then." Bree points out logically.

Damon wants to argue just to argue but he knows she's right and he doesn't really want to deal with Lexi being angry with him for ruining Stefan's diet again. He just turns to Gail. "Gail, you alright?" he drawls.

"I've been better." She sasses tiredly in a hoarse voice. She looks kind of terrible with dry tear tracks on her face and pale sweaty skin and messed up hair.

"C'mon let's get you home." Damon smirks.

* * *

Damon gets Stefan a local mountain lion and Bree siphons its blood into Stefan's mouth and eventually he reanimates. He seems highly relived that Damon got him an animal instead of a human. He gives Damon a grateful smile which Damon ignores.

* * *

"Do I need one of those sun rings?" Gail questions from the backseat of the Camaro as they drive back to the boarding house, the sun had set by now so Gail had managed to avoid suffering the effects of what the sun would now do to her now that she was a vampire but she did remember that they needed rings to walk in the sun.

"Daylight rings," Stefan corrects, "Yes but I asked Bree and she said she wouldn't make you one until you learned control. I imagine Sheila will give me a similar response."

"I guess that makes sense. I don't want to hurt anyone. Especially Zach or the girls." Gail says shuttering at the thought.

"About that, you can't be around Dorothy until you learn control. You aren't eating the munchkin on my watch." Damon reveals.

"That includes Zach and Sarah," Stefan inputs giving Damon a look for excluding them, "It's for their safety."

"I can't even see my newborn baby?" Gail laments.

"Nope." Damon says insensitively.

"I'm sorry Gail." Stefan says with more grace, "Don't worry I'll help you learn control. I'm sure Lexi will help too. She has the best control of anyone I've ever met. You'll see them again in no time."

"Thank you, Stefan." Gail smiles shakily.

* * *

"Uncle Damon!" Dorothy yells as she sees his car pull up in the driveway. She drops the ball she was playing with and runs to them. Lexi looks at her with a mix of amusement and bemusement as Dorothy abandons their game of catch to see Damon.

"Hey, Munchkin." Damon smiles as he gets out the car, he picks her up and puts her on his shoulders which makes her giggle.

Stefan gets out the car alongside Gail who he has a firm grip on so she doesn't jump a very human Dorothy. Dorothy gasps in delight when she sees her, "Momma!" she cheers from Damon's shoulders, she moves to jump off but Damon doesn't let her.

"Munchkin, you can't get near here right now. Not until she learns how to be like Stefan." Damon explains patiently.

Dorothy scrunches up her nose and protests, "Why is she gonna be like Uncle Stefan, you're cooler!"

"Please don't say that, Dorothy." Gail begs.

"Why?" Dorothy questions with a tilt of her head.

"Drinking from humans is bad." Gail insists.

"Uncle Damon says it's natural and drinking from animals is bad for you. I don't want you to get sick!" Dorothy worries.

"Damon is wrong. I'm your mother, you should listen to me." Gail says sounding agitated. Dorothy's eyes fill with tears at her mother's tone.

"Okay it's time to separate you two." Damon cuts in.

"No!" Gail yells not wanting Damon around her daughter and further corrupting her, she fights Stefan's grip but he holds strong.

"Damon just go." Stefan urges as he drags Gail back out to the shack.

* * *

"Why is Momma being mean?" Dorothy whimpers.

"Her emotions are heightened, she needs some time to adjust to that." Damon consoles.

"Will you help her?" Dorothy asks.

"Stefan got it." Damon waves off.

"But you said animal blood is bad!" Dorothy protests again.

"It's not bad. It's just makes you weaker compared to other vampires which I think is dangerous. She'll survive on it. If that's what she wants." Damon says sneering lightly.

"Promise?" Dorothy implores.

"Promise." Damon agrees.

"Thank you for saving Momma, Uncle Damon you're the best!" she smiled brightly.

"Anything for you, Munchkin." he responds under his breath not wanting to acknowledge how true that was.

"I'm tired." Dorothy yawns.

"Well it is way past your bedtime. Why Lexi let you stay up this late I don't know. Go to bed Munchkin. Will go see your dad in the morning and tell him the news." Damon promises.

* * *

_The next morning_

"Daddy, Momma's okay, Uncle Damon saved her!" Dorothy announced as she walked into Sarah's hospital room. Damon was surprised Zach didn't get whiplash from how fast he turned his head to look at her after she said that.

"What did you say?" Zach asked.

"We found her wandering in the woods. She's a vampire Zach, she died with my blood in her system. Don't worry Stefan going to help her adjust." Damon tells him lying slightly because Gail asked him to in the car and Damon understood her not wanting to tell anyone about the Augustine.

"This better not be a joke Damon." Zach demanded sounding choked up.

"It's not I swear," Damon promises, "Look I'll call the house and you can hear her voice."

Damon alongside Dorothy walk out into the hall with Zach following them as Damon goes over to one of the phones at the hospital staff use and dials the house phone and Stefan picks up.

"Give the phone to Gail, Zach wants proof." Damon informs him.

"Zach?" Gail asks sounding emotional.

"Gail?" Zach whispers as if any louder would make her voice disappear, "You're alive?"

"Sort of, I'm a vampire now? Is that okay?" she asks hesitantly.

"I don't care. You still the woman I married." Zach answers automatically.

"Oh Zach." She cries sounding relieved.

Damon shifts uncomfortably and takes Dorothy with him as he leaves Zach to his conversation.

"Is Daddy, okay?" Dorothy asks concerned as she watches her Daddy start crying.

"He's gonna be just fine, trust me." Damon assures her.

Dorothy believes him.


	6. Damon's Decision

TVD The Blood Games

Disclaimer: The vampire diaries does not belong to me. Only the OC, Dorothy I created belongs to me.

* * *

Chapter 6: Damon's Decision

_May 13, 1994_

"You know Damon. I know it was you left those bodies in the living room." Gail mentions as she gets packed for her camping trip into the woods were she'd undergo vampire boot camp with Lexi and Stefan. She had asked Damon to speak with her and he'd agreed.

"I'd wondered when someone was going to say something." Damon murmured.

"Zach hates confrontations. As far as he's concerned you know better now and everything turned out well in the end. He's also convinced since Dorothy likes you that there's something redeemable about you. But I'm not so forgiving or convinced." Gail explains with steel in her voice.

Damon braced himself when he heard her tone.

She continues explaining, "When Zach briefed me on the history of his family. He mentioned how you and Stefan didn't get along and how casualties are left behind in the wake of your fights. But things were calm and Dorothy pulled you in with her unique charm. I thought maybe the fighting was finally over and that you were trying to be a better."

Gail frowns severely, "I was wrong obviously. You fed from me and my husband. Which Zach still doesn't remember. I gave you the benefit of the doubt no matter your past and you disappointed me. I assume based on your track record the bodies were left because Stefan upset you in some way?" she asked with an eyebrow raised.

Damon just nodded seeing that she had more to say.

"See Damon you were lucky that I became a vampire and that I didn't actually permanently die and that Sarah survived as well. Because if Sarah and me had died you would have robbed Dorothy of a mother and sister. You adore Dorothy and I know you wouldn't have wanted to do that to her. You need to understand that she is a very young impressionable human girl. She's shouldn't grow up to be as selfish and destructive as you." Gail passionately states.

Damon was not expecting this conversation to go this way. He has no idea what to say but felt like he should be offended.

Gail doesn't expect a response, she said her piece and if Zach is right and Damon has a decent bone in his body. He will remove himself from Dorothy's life so she won't grow up around Damon's twisted morals. It's all she could really do. Damon was older then her and Stefan had decided that being around Dorothy was good for Damon and removing her would be a bad idea so he was no help. Gail wasn't physically strong enough to force him but she could maybe could appeal to his humanity.

* * *

_May 16, 1994_

"Hello, Damon." Enzo grins at Damon from his spot on the front porch of the boarding house a few days after Gail had told Damon off.

"Enzo." He responds flatly, "You found out where I live I see."

"It is called the Salvatore Boarding House." Enzo couldn't help pointing out, "You wouldn't mind getting the owner to let your old friend in, would you?" he grinned charmingly.

"I thought we had an unspoken agreement that we'd go our separate ways." Damon complained.

"Well my plan had been to go on a killing spree for all those who tortured me. When I learned that you beat me to the punch. Good on you, Damon. You killed them all like you said you would all those years ago." Enzo marveled.

"You know me I always keep a promise when it comes to murder." Damon grinned sarcastically.

"This discovery has made me reevaluate my stance on forgiving you. Although Aaron Whitmore III is still alive want to help kill him with me?" Enzo invites.

"Kind of busy, you know with baby vamp Gail." Damon mused aloud.

"Doesn't Broody got that?" Enzo retorts, raising an eyebrow.

"His name is Stefan." Damon corrects but he is slightly amused by Enzo nickname.

"Stefan, your brother? The one who left you to rot?" That Stefan?" Enzo questioned.

"Yes that Stefan who I'm actually getting along with these days. So get lost Enzo." Damon dismissed.

"Oh I see how it is you have Stefan so you don't need old Enzo, huh?" Enzo snarled, "I don't think so!"

"Enzo take your crazy elsewhere." Damon sighs as he slams the door in his face.

* * *

Dorothy startles when she sees a strange man knocking on her bedroom window. 'Open it' he mouths at her. She just squints at him. "Uncle Damon!" she yells.

"What Dorothy?" he asks as he flashes into her room and then spots Enzo.

"There's a strange man outside my window." Dorothy informs him.

"Seriously Enzo. Creeping on little girls now? You've sunken that low?" Damon mutters exasperated.

"Damon, let me in." Enzo insists.

"Don't make me call a witch on you." Damon warns.

"Will it be the gorgeous one?" Enzo asks cheekily.

"No it will be one that will not hesitant to melt your brain out of your ears." Damon sasses.

"Kinky." Enzo smirks.

"He reminds me of you, Uncle Damon." Dorothy smiles.

"No." Damon says simply as he pushes Dorothy out of her own room.

* * *

"Who was that?" Dorothy asked as she let Damon carry her away from her room.

"Enzo." Damon scowled.

"Enzo your friend, I thought he died?" Dorothy questioned in a confused tone.

"So did I." Damon muttered.

"Isn't this a good thing? Why are you sad?" Dorothy badgered worriedly.

"I'm not sad!" Damon protested.

"Are too! You're doing that thing were your pretend to be mad when you're really sad!" Dorothy insisted.

"You know, you are a very creepy child." Damon informs disturbed at how accurately she can read him.

Dorothy stuck out her tongue at him, "No I'm just smarter than you!"

* * *

_May 23, 1994_

"Damon, can you please try harder to get rid of Enzo. His presence is making me uncomfortable." Zach complained to his great-great-great granduncle a week after Enzo first reappearance.

He just come back from getting his photos developed. Ever since Stefan, Lexi, and Gail had all left to go on a vampire training session two weeks ago, Zach had been obsessively taking pictures of everything so Gail wouldn't feel like she missed anything in the girls lives. They were mostly pictures of Sarah sleeping or eating in her incubator. But Dorothy's pictures were more varied and Gail would definitely get a kick out of them.

"I think he wants to be Uncle Damon friend again." Dorothy chimed from her spot on the couch were she was coloring a picture of a forest.

"No he's stalking me. If anyone ever does that to you. You tell me and I'll eat them." Damon corrected as he handed her a green crayon for one of the trees.

"Why don't you want to be around him?" Zach questions not understanding why Damon was avoiding someone he used to consider a friend.

"Enzo is off his rocker now. I don't do crazy." Damon stated bluntly.

"That hurts me, Damon." Enzo voice was heard saying from the outside.

"Go away, you nutcase!" Damon yelled out to him.

Zach sighed, 'Vampires and their dramas.' he thought, rolling his eyes.

* * *

"Damon I genuinely don't understand why you are turning down killing someone with me." Enzo says with a puzzled look on his face the next day as he sits outside the Salvatore's front door.

"I'm trying to be a better person nowadays, that means no murder unfortunately." Damon explained from behind the closed door as he leaned against it.

"The Damon Salvatore I remember wouldn't even hesitate in getting revenge with me. Have you really gotten so soft?" Enzo grimaced.

"You know you're welcome to go kill him all by yourself." Damon mentioned.

"That's not as fun." Enzo complained.

"Don't you have anyone else to bother?" Damon questioned irritated.

"Not really, remember my lady love? I finally found out what happened to her. She died in 1960. I'm all alone." Enzo mourned.

"Sucks for you." Damon snarked.

"You know she was murdered rather gruesomely. Her head was ripped off. I think a vampire killed her." Enzo chatted conversationally.

"Sounds like someone I know." Damon said under his breath.

"So it was Stefan!" Enzo raged.

"I never said that." Damon said quickly.

"I knew it! I'll kill him." Enzo ranted as he flashed away.

"Shit." Damon muttered to himself. He goes to follow when he notices a journal that Enzo must of left behind on the porch. Damon opened it and saw a picture of a beautiful woman who must of been Enzo's Maggie. She looked familiar...

"Fuck me." Damon cussed.

* * *

Damon rushed after him, he came across Enzo tackling Stefan into the woods interrupting one of Gail's lessons. The lessons that we're deep in Mystic Falls forests because Gail didn't want to be too far away from her family.

"You killed Maggie, you bastard!" Enzo was yelling.

"What the hell are you talking about?!" Stefan shouted back.

"My ex-girlfriend Maggie, you killed her in 1960!" Enzo stated aggressively.

"Stefan wasn't a ripper in the 60s." Lexi butted in as she stepped between them.

"Who else rips off their victims heads?! It's his calling card!" Enzo argued.

"Enzo stop! I killed Maggie, okay?" Damon admitted as he ran over to Enzo.

"What?" Enzo asked blankly.

"You left behind her journal on the porch." Damon explains as he holds up a picture of Maggie.

"This is her, right? I killed her." Damon repeats, "didn't even bat an eye. She had the Augustine crest. I was going out of my way to kill them. I had no idea she was your Maggie. Just do whatever it is you got to do. You want to kill me, you want to hate me, do it. This is between us. Leave Stefan alone."

"Well, that's the problem, Damon. I don't want to hate you. Because if I hate you, then I have nothing left. but there is another option." Enzo murmurs.

"Hell no." Lexi denies as she quickly snaps Enzo neck before he can flip his switch.

"He'll still do it when he wakes up." Damon deadpans.

"I'm taking him to the detox room. I think it's time I had a chat with Enzo." Lexi decides.

* * *

"Uh what the hell?" Enzo groans as he wakes up restrained to a chair.

"Hello Enzo, I don't believe we've been properly introduced. I'm Lexi." Lexi introduces herself.

"Why am I tied to a chair? I'm all for bondage but you really should ask first." Enzo snarks.

"You and Damon have the same sense of humor." Lexi mused.

"Except I'm much more charming than him, right gorgeous?" Enzo smirks with a wink.

Lexi looks slightly amused before she responds seriously "Look Enzo, you've been through hell there is no denying that. I understand that you feel that turning off your emotions is your best option in the light of Damon's past actions but don't do it."

"And why do you care?" Enzo asked.

"I don't like to see people suffer, Enzo. I always try to help people if I can." Lexi explains.

"Why though?" Enzo puzzles not understanding how someone could care for someone she doesn't even know.

"Because there was a time when I needed someone to do that for me." Lexi answered somberly.

"Oh do tell." Enzo encouraged as he raised his eyebrows suggestively.

"I'm not going to tell you my life story just yet Enzo. First you have to be my friend first." Lexi smiled.

"Oh?" he smirked.

"Congratulations you're my newest venture." Lexi smirked back.

* * *

Damon was not having a good month.

First, he finds out that he has to wait another fifteen years to free Katherine from the goddamn tomb.

Second, he nearly got Dorothy's mother and sister killed which would have made Dorothy hate him. Luckily, the doctor's saved Sarah but Gail did end up as a vampire.

Third, he discovers that Enzo his friend he thought he abandoned to die was alive and now slightly unhinged. Enzo who was encouraging his more darker urges.

Fourth, Gail tells him that he's going ruin Dorothy's life. Stefan and Lexi kept saying the same thing.

Damon did_ not_ want to ruin Dorothy's childhood. He wanted her to have all the things a little girl should. He knew that maybe he wasn't the best influence on her as she was picking up his sass but that's the least offensive thing she could have copied from him. He didn't want her to think that killing was okay and become some sort of psychopath! Dorothy was too young to fully understand anyway. Everyone was blowing this out of proportion. She'd forget all this, as no one remember things they did as a two year old. But... she _did_ have disturbing good memory and was _way _too observant for a kid her age. The kid was messed up all on her own which was one of the reasons why Damon was so fond of her.

He was much too selfish to just leave her life completely but maybe he could leave her life for a bit and then come back when she's older and less impressionable. Maybe then everyone would get off is back about corrupting her. He was sick of everyone judging his every action.

* * *

_May 26, 1994_

"Damon." Enzo greeted coolly as Damon marched over to him a few days after it was revealed that Damon killed Maggie.

"Emotions still on, I see you fell for Lexi's particular charm." Damon sneered, rolling his eyes.

"She is an amazing woman." Enzo pointed out with a smirk.

"Do you really want to be her next pet project?" Damon condescended.

"I'm not a "pet project". She's going to help me-" Enzo started arguing offended but Damon cut him off.

"Please don't be naive Enzo. You're better than that. Lexi likes to collect people she finds as broken and "fix" them. My brother is already lost in her web. Don't you go falling too." Damon snarked.

"You can't dislike her too terribly. She's still alive after all." Enzo pointed out.

"Lexi in her own way helped Stefan find some control in his life. No matter how weak that control is. I'm grateful for that." Damon admitted begrudgingly but continued saying, "but she has made my brother afraid to embrace to his naturally instincts. Which I believe was unintentional but Stefan shouldn't fear himself. He should learn to embrace what he has become and he'll be much happier. But Stefan is a stubborn idiot and refuses."

"Why are you telling me this? What are you up to Damon?" Enzo puzzled.

"I don't want you to end up like Stefan." Damon states.

"I won't. I'm not a ripper." Enzo denies easily.

"You're not a saint though. Don't try to be one." Damon commands.

"Listen to your own advise! You like a whipped dog when it comes to that little girl!" Enzo shouted indignantly.

"You are right," Damon acknowledged, "Which is why I propose we both leave and go kill the remaining Augustine together." Damon smirked.

Enzo raised an eyebrow at him, "I thought you were trying to be a better person?" Enzo mocked.

"I've had a change of heart." Damon grins darkly.


	7. The Greatest Hunter

TVD The Blood Games

Disclaimer: The vampire diaries does not belong to me. Only the OC, Dorothy I created belongs to me.

* * *

Chapter 7: The Greatest Hunter

_December 5, 1995_

"What do you mean there's a new vampire in town?!" Gail hissed into the phone at Abby Bennett.

"I mean that an older looking in comparison to the Salvatore brothers has arrived in Mystic Falls and he seems to be looking for something called a doppelganger. Mother is being very tight-lipped about what that is. I'd have to scourge the library for answers and who knows how long that take to find the correct information." Abby gossiped.

"Look I don't want some strange vampire in my town, around my kids! You and Sheila have got to drive him out." Gail demanded.

"I'd spoken with him, he seems like a Stefan-type." Abby grinned.

"Or maybe he's really like Damon and is putting on a good show!" Gail shouted.

"Damon wasn't all bad. He loved Dorothy and he listened to you when you warned him what his continued presence would do to her and left town." Abby defended.

"Did you not listen to me when I told you _just last week_ that Stefan who has been tracking him for the last year has discovered more bodies of the Augustine left behind were Damon's wake. He's killing people again!" Gail growled out.

"Well they did torture him and his friend for years." Abby pointed out.

"Abby you are a terrible witch! You're supposed to hate vampires not be fascinated by them!" Gail groaned out annoyed.

"Trust me, my mother loves telling me the same thing." Abby said rolling her eyes, "but vampires are still people they just have longer lives and have seen so much. How can I not be interested?" Abby questioned.

"Just don't do anything stupid, Abby." Gail cautioned.

"I won't my vampiric friend." Abby reassured cheekily.

"I barely count I've only been a vampire for a year." Gail sighed.

"I know but it has made you more fun." Abby sassed.

"Gee thanks." Gail responded sarcastically.

"Talk to you later!" Abby said as she hung up her phone.

* * *

Abby after hanging up the phone decided to find this mystery vampire and speak to him again. She knew her mother and her friends would be cross with her for being so reckless but Abby couldn't help her curiosity. She got in her car and headed to Mystic Grill where the man had been seen at previously.

"Hello again, Stranger, how's the search going?" Abby questioned as she sauntered up to the strange vampire who was drinking in Mystic Grill just like he'd been the previous times they'd spoken.

"Hello again, little witch," He greeted charmingly, "you can't seem to stay away."

"I've only meet two other vampires and they're less two hundred years old. I get the feeling you are much older. I can't help but wonder about what you've learned in your time in this world." Abby gushed.

"Those other vampires are infants compared to me, my dear. You better be careful how you speak." The man warned softly.

Abby flushed feeling scolded realizing she was being a bit rude by continuously badgering this man.

"Sorry, didn't mean to be a bother but I finally looked up stuff about the doppelganger. This is her right?" Abby inquired as she showed a picture of a rather beautiful brunette woman.

"That is a picture of Katerina Petrova in the late 19th century?" the man estimated.

"Yeah! It belong to one of my vampire friend's Stefan, who was screwed over by her and he keeps the picture because he is a masochist. He'd never heard of a doppelganger but from what I read I thought maybe Katerina Petrova and Katherine Pierce are the same person. It seems that I was right!" Abby grinned triumphantly.

"Clever witch." The man complimented.

"Thank you!" Abby blushed.

"But I'm not looking for Katerina. I'm looking for the newest doppelganger." The man corrected.

"Oh I haven't seen anyone in town who shares this face." Abby commented confused.

"She'd be a child. I was told." The man explained.

"A child?" Abby repeated and continued in a concerned tone, "what would you do with her?"

"That is none of your concern, my dear." The man dismissed.

* * *

"Momma! Come push me!" Dorothy cried out happily.

"Of course, my little Doe." Gail obliged as she regulated her strength to push the swing for her daughter who turns five years old in two weeks.

"Woo!" Dorothy cheered.

Gail had been begged by Dorothy to take her to the playground. Gail had been hesitant in the light of Abby's news but had eventually agreed not think a vampire would go to a child's public playground. Over in the sand pit, Zach was entertaining a two year old Sarah. When Gail had to use the restroom she told Dorothy to go over to her father and she did.

Gail was startled when she was grabbed on her way to the restrooms, she instinctively fought but the arms would not budge. Gail felt a chill go her spine as she realized this must be the mysterious vampire, Abby mentioned.

"What is a vampire think it's doing around children?" a man's voice growled.

"They're mine!" Gail responded immediately.

"You had them before you were turned?" the man questioned before sneering, "or _adoption_?"

"I birthed them both!" Gail answered not understanding by this man wanted to know these things.

"How long have you been a vampire?" he asked.

"A year!" Gail answered urgently, "I drink from animals!"

"Do you now?" he mocked, "how noble."

"I don't want to hurt anyone especially my kids." Gail responded honestly.

"You are a blood sucking vermin, they'd be better off without you." He retorted as he started crushing her and Gail tried her best not to scream not wanting anyone to get hurt trying to save her.

Gail felt her bones break as she suddenly heard Dorothy's voice come from behind them, "Momma, are you okay!? What is that sound?"

Gail could not speak she was in such pain but the man could, "Go away child." He warned.

"Are you hurting, my Momma?" Dorothy demanded angrily as came around to see her mother's expression of agony.

"No-" the man started.

"Stop it!" Dorothy yelled as she picked up a rock and threw it at the man' head.

The man easily dodged it but he looked irritated, "What a disrespectful child. Interrupting adult conversations." He dropped a boneless Gail and flashed to Dorothy which made Gail croak in terror, "Leave her alone!"

The man picked up Dorothy by her forearms and looked into her eyes, "You will forget this encounter and go back to your father." He compelled.

"I will not!" Dorothy yelled as she tried to kick his face.

"You are on vervain...how unfortunate for you." The man sighed and then headbutted her which knocked her out instantly and then he carefully dropped her to the ground. The man then went back to Gail ready to rip out her heart when suddenly he seemed to hear something and stopped. The man then flashed away leaving a slowly healing Gail and likely concussed Dorothy on the grassy floor.

* * *

"Gail? Dorothy?" Zach called out as knocked on the women's restroom with his right hand his other supporting a sleeping Sarah. He wondered why his wife and oldest daughter were taking so long. As he walked back he noticed dragged marks on the floor and followed them coming across Gail who was cradling Dorothy in her lap and trying to feed Dorothy, her blood.

"Gail, what happened?" he whisper yelled.

"We were attacked by a strange vampire. He nearly _killed_ me. He headbutted Dorothy." Gail explained shakily.

"The new vampire in town was at a children's park?!" Zach asked horrified.

"He can't be up to anything good." Gail grimaced.

* * *

"Oh my god are you two okay?!" Abby breathes into the phone as Gail informs her of what happened to her in the park.

"Yes but god Abby it was too close. I have no idea why the man stopped but thank god he did. I'm mostly worried about how Dorothy is going to process this. She's never been exposed to such violence, for all his fault's Damon never did show her his darker side. He left before he could. Now this new vampire shows up and you said he is looking for this double or something? Why hang around where kids would be?!" Gail rambled anxious.

"Doppelganger," Abby corrected, "...Gail I'll fix this trust me. I won't let him hurt any kids." Abby vowed as she looked at the books her mother would kill her if she knew she possessed.

"Abby be careful, please this man is incredibly dangerous." Gail warned her friend.

"I'll fix this." Abby repeated before hanging up, "looks like I was right to buy this books. I'm going to have to resort to dark stuff to stop this guy." Abby muttered grimly as she continued looking over the spells.

* * *

"Annabelle," Mikael drawled as he looked at the young Asian girl who gazed back him apprehensively, "if you want my help to free your mother, I need the human doppelganger. You said she was here in Mystic Falls. There are many little brown-hair children that could easily be her. If you don't procure better results for me. I afraid our deal will be null and void."

"Please my sources tell me that the newest doppelganger was definitely born in Mystic Falls. I'll find her I swear!" Anna pleaded.

"Your promise mean nothing until you follow through, child." Mikael stated sternly.

"I am, I am," Anna begged, "look I've avoided all the witches in town. I already befriended a girl around my age her name is Jenna Sommers. Jenna is the sister-in-law of one of the town's hunters. I'm sure I kind find out more the supernatural happenings of this town through her brother-in-law. Just give me a few days!"

"Very few humans know about the doppelganger." Mikael said doubtfully.

"Please just a few days!" Anna begged again.

"Fine but if this supposed lead leads nowhere well then it won't end well for you will it?" Mikael questioned rhetorically giving her a dark look.

"Thank you, thank you." Anna gushed before flashing away.

* * *

"Jenna, hey!" Anna called as she ran over to the fifteen year old girl who was just leaving the Mystic Grill. Jenna looked up at her name being called at smiled at her newest friend, "Hi, Anna!" Jenna greeted happily.

"You want to go shopping?" Anna asked brightly.

"Sure!" Jenna chirped.

* * *

"Hey there stranger!" Abby called as she walked over to were the mystery man was walking down the streets of Mystic Falls. She truly didn't want to speak to the deceitfully charming man again but she needed to know more information about him to properly kill him, like his approximate age for example.

"Little witch." He greeted in return nodding his head at her.

"Look I wanted to apologize for being so invasive and flirty earlier. I know it wasn't appreciated. I'm usually more levelheaded!" Abby laughed before suggesting, "let me buy you a drink?"

The man raised an eyebrow and looked amused at the suggestion, "such a strange time we live in were woman offer to buy things for men." He commented.

"You make yourself sound so old!" Abby laughed again, somewhat from nerves.

"I am over thousand years old, dear." The man retorted dryly.

"What?!" Abby yelled partially because she was shocked he was so old and because he told her this soon. She thought he'd be harder to crack was he suspicious? Abby thought worriedly but kept that off her face by looking shocked.

"In my days woman ran the household and the men provided." He continued.

"Well it is the twentieth century and nearly the twenty-first. Times have been changing rapidly since industrialization." Abby pointed out.

"True," he mused, "I'll accept your offer. You are delightful company." He smirked.

Abby smiled back but inside she was steeling herself for what she had planned to get the answers she needed from him.

* * *

Abby was kind of stunned that she was managing to befriend this man. He was rather guarded and he had a dark sense of humor but he was so damn charming. If she hadn't known about what he did to Gail and Dorothy she'd think he was perfectly nice man. But if she really thought about it he fit the serial killer facade to a tee. Ted Bundy anyone? Still she was friendly and helpful in his search as much as she dared risk at least. She slowly eased into being flirty again mentally apologizing to her husband Rudy. The man seemed to be more responsive to her advances as he got to know her.

* * *

_December 19, 1995_

"You're a father?" Abby asked surprised slightly but not really he looked old enough to be one as they were overlooking spell books together a few weeks after she learned his age, they were both a bit drunk Mikael more so because Abby may have put a special potion in his drink.

"Yes I had sev-six children." He stated.

"You almost said seven." Abby noticed.

"He ended up being a result of an affair my wife had. I shouldn't have been surprised the bastard was always weak." Mikael spat.

"That's harsh. You still raised him as your own." Abby couldn't help saying.

"He wasn't of my blood. You don't understands how important that was back then." Mikael retorted sharply.

"Still-" Abby started but Mikael cut her off, "I don't want to speak of that mongrel any longer, tell me would this spell work?"

"You know I have a daughter." Abby blurted desperate to get more info on his kids. Mikael looks at her in surprise and a slight sad look on his eyes.

"I had two." He revealed, "my lovely Freya died in the plague and Rebekah chose the mongrel over me." He mourned.

"I'm sorry." Abby muttered as she saw the pure grief on the man's face.

"It was a long time ago. Freya my little darling is at peace and I know I can get Rebekah to see the error of her ways." Mikael said determinedly.

"I hope you do." Abby lied.

* * *

"What did you do, little witch." Mikael snarled the next day as he choked Abby.

"W-what?" Abby wheezed out.

"I told you things you had no right to know. What. Did. You. Do." He growled lowly.

"I spiked the beer!" Abby gasped.

"Plotting against me little witch?" he asked in a deadly voice.

"No!" she rasped, "y-you're a closed book all the time. I just wanted to know more about you."

"You had no right." He hissed.

"I'm sorry, please." She begged.

"I should kill you," He whispered darkly, "but I won't as your skills are still useful to me but if you tell anyone about what I told you or ever do something like that again I'll tear your little Bonnie limb from limb as you watch. Are we clear?"

"Yes." She whispered terrified.

"Good," he stated pleasantly as he released her from his grip which made her cough and gasp for air, "now those spells which do you think will work best?"

Abby couldn't believe how quickly this man could switch moods but she answered nonetheless, "the one on page 487."

* * *

_December 23, 1994_

"You're married." Mikael commented a few days after the choking incident.

"Yes." Abby confirmed confused.

"You have a daughter with this man." He continued.

"Yes." She confirmed again more confused.

"Why did you flirt with me if you are married?" he asked intently.

"Uh um it's my personality." Abby said evasively.

"Don't lie to me Abigail." He warned.

"I love Rudy," she responded defensively, "he just doesn't pay that much attention to me since he got his promotion at work this year and isn't home as much. I get lonely sometimes."

"Marriage is supposed to mean always and forever. You are supposed to stay by his side and not stray!" Mikael yelled passionately.

"I haven't slept with anyone!" Abby retorted as he sparks her temper.

"But you've thought about." He hissed.

"What business is it of yours?" Abby asked offended.

Mikael just gets a far off angry look on his face and doesn't answer.

"I've found the Doppelganger!" Anna announced as he walked into Mikael's apartment interrupting his discussion about marriage with Abby.

"What?" Abby gasped panicking inside.

"Who?" Mikael demanded.

"I'm positive that it's Jenna's little niece, Elena Gilbert. She looks like a mini-Katherine." Anna boasted.

"Are you risking your life and your mother's on this hunch?" Mikael asked carefully.

"Why don't we have your witch here confirm it?" Anna asked suddenly less confident in the wake of Mikael's threat.

"Abigail?" Mikael asked looking at Abby expectantly.

"I'll need her blood and something of Katherine's." Abby stalled as she mentally freaked out that one of her best's daughter was now in danger from Mikael.

"I have a lock of Katerina's hair." Mikael offered without any explanation as to why and Abby didn't want to know.

"I'll get the blood." Anna volunteered.

"Don't hurt Elena." Abby demanded but Anna was already gone to fulfill her task.

* * *

When Anna got back, Abby had no choice but to do the spell that is if she didn't want to tip Mikael off.

"She's the doppelganger." Abby breathed unable to disguise her horror.

"Wonderful work, ladies." Mikael smirked.

"Will you help me free my mom now?" Anna questioned fervently.

"Annabelle have patience. I have to finish my business with the doppelganger first." Mikael chided.

"Of course, sorry." Anna apologized fearing his temper.

"What are you going to do?" Abby asked unable to hide her anxiety any longer.

"Kill the bastard." He grinned darkly and vamped away.

* * *

"Shit." Abby breathed.

"He's terrifying, I know." Anna sympathized.

"I can't let him hurt Elena. I don't know how she'll help him kill his son but it can't be good." Abby murmured to herself.

"Are you thinking of fighting Mikael?" Anna asks in disbelief.

Abby's eyes snap to Anna and she says, "Help me!"

"Are you crazy?! I need his help it's the only reason I'm in this shitty town again." Anna denied.

"He think he'll hold his end of the bargain? Please he doesn't care about your problems. He'll probably just kill you." Abby insisted.

"W-what? Why do you think that?" Anna demanded alarmed.

"He only cares about killing his son nothing else matters. I can't imagine if he succeeds he'll bother to stay around and help you and if you insist he'll kill you." Abby explained.

"But my mom!" Anna protested.

"If you help me, I'll free her. I swear on the Bennett name." Abby swore.

"Fine." Anna muttered.

* * *

Thanks to Anna, Abby got the Gilbert house only a few minutes after Mikael. She saw that he was trying to charm Miranda to let him in but she didn't not trusting strangers thanks to her husband's warnings about vampires.

Abby gave Mikael the mother of all aneurysms which made him collapse to his knees screaming. Miranda stumbled back in horror at the scene as he looked back in her house worriedly most likely about Elena or Jeremy seeing it. Abby knew Grayson was at work.

"Give us Elena!" Anna demanded as Abby concentrated on hurting Mikael.

"W-what?! No!" Miranda denied venomously.

"Trust me, Mire!" Abby screamed out desperately.

Miranda gave her a look before sighing and going inside the house. She came back with Elena who was crying scared by the screams. She very reluctantly gave Elena to Anna who flashed away and then came back and grabbed Abby. Miranda quickly shut the door on the prone Mikael.

Mikael got up slowly as fury raged in his heart at Abby's betrayal. He left the Gilbert's yard in hot pursuit.

* * *

Abby drove like a wild woman out of Mystic Falls as Anna compelled Elena to forget what she seen and to go to sleep which she did. Abby had set up a crypt in North Caroline to lock a desiccated Mikael she was inspired by Anna's story of her mother's current fate.

Mikael nearly caught up to them as he chased them but Abby had vervain grenades made and Anna wore gloves to throw them back at him for the entire drive to the crypt. Elena was kept unconscious.

* * *

As Abby harnessed the dark magic to defeat Mikael, she felt the corruption fill her soul and she screamed, blood pouring down her face from her nose, her eyes turning black.

In the end the spell worked and Anna chained Mikael inside his crypt. Abby got lost in the darkness.

* * *

_December 24, 1995_

"You stupid foolish girl!" Sheila hissed at her daughter. Abby blinked blearily as she returned to consciousness.

"Mother...?" she croaked.

"I can't believe I raised such a reckless child! I knew when you started avoiding me something was wrong. But I thought if it was serious you would have come to me for help. Obviously I was mistaken. Christ do you even realize what you have done to yourself?!" Sheila ranted.

"Please stop yelling." Abby moaned tiredly.

"I yell if I damn please! You nearly got yourself killed. That much dark magic should have killed you if that girl Anna hadn't gotten you to me in time. I had to do a purification ritual. You're not a witch anymore." Sheila revealed.

"W-what?" Abby gasped.

"I've never been so disappointed in you, Abigail. You should have asked me for help." Sheila scolded.

"It had to be me," she explained weakly, "he never suspected me until the end. If you had been involved he would have seen the betrayal a mile away. He's gone now. Elena is safe, isn't she?"

"She is back with her mother who demands an explanation by the way." Sheila mentioned.

"I talk to her later. I'm tired Momma." Abby sighed.

"Then sleep you damn fool." Sheila chided lightly.

* * *

"The man is dead?" Gail sighed in relief as she listened to Sheila explain what happened over the phone an hour after Abby woke up from using dark magic.

"Yes but Abigail will have to suffer a high price for his defeat." Sheila sighed tiredly.

"Will she be okay?" Gail asked worriedly.

"She's strong but no witch should go through this." Sheila lamented.

"Anything I can do to help?" Gail asked eagerly.

"Just keep being her friend." Sheila stated simply.

"I can do that." Gail smiled.

* * *

"Momma, the bad man is gone?" Dorothy asked hopefully.

"Yes he can't hurt me or you ever again." Gail reassured hoping this news will stop Dorothy nightmares.

She'd been having dream of the mysterious vampire she called the bad man killing Gail and herself. Gail had been highly concerned with how she described the deaths with snapped necks and hearts being ripped out and dismembered limbs. Apparently Dorothy had seen Damon kill those people he left in the living room two years ago and never told anyone. Gail worried for Dorothy.

* * *

Author's note: No Damon in this chapter but he'll be back. Abby's POV was necessary for my plans. Gotta love the Bennett women. I hope you like the chapter even with the Salvatore family more in the background.


	8. The Bad Man

TVD The Blood Games

Disclaimer: The vampire diaries does not belong to me. Only the OC, Dorothy I created belongs to me.

**WARNING** for kinda dark nightmare

* * *

Chapter 8: The Bad Man

_September 8, 1997_

"Momma stop pulling on my hair." Dorothy whined, wincing as Gail carefully combed the knots out her curly hair that morning.

"Sorry my little Doe," Gail apologizes as she tries to be more gentle, "but you have so much hair!"

"I like it, like that!" Dorothy informs cheekily.

"Doe!" Sarah squeals happily as she runs into Dorothy's room with Zach on her heels interrupting Gail and Dorothy's conversation.

"Sarah please come back here. I still got to put on your skirt." Zach implored.

A half-naked Sarah completely ignored her father as she launched herself at her big sister, "Do you have to go?" she pouted.

"Today's my first day of elementary school! I get to learn the cool stuff now!" Dorothy enthused to her little sister.

"But who will play with me, now?" she whined.

"Momma will, she's the best to play with, with her vampire powers!" Dorothy grinned.

"I suppose I'm just chop liver." Zach deadpans as he looked at his children with a pitiful expression on his face still holding Sarah's skirt in his hands.

"You are a boring old human." Dorothy sassed. Sarah nodded with a big grin on her face backing up her sister's words.

"Girls be nice to your father." Gail scolded.

"Sorry." they chorused sheepishly.

* * *

"Dorothy, remember to be on your best behavior and do not talk under circumstances talk about blood or vampires!" Gail cautioned as she dropped her daughter off at Mystic Falls Elementary.

"I know Momma." Dorothy pouts childishly, "You've told me a thousand times!"

"Well we don't want a repeat of the kindergarten incident now do we?" Gail asks sending Dorothy a disproving look.

"That wasn't my fault!" Dorothy protested immediately, "How was I supposed to know Mrs. Fritz would freak out so badly?"

"Anyone would be if you asked them to donate their blood to you to feed your mother!" Gail chastised.

"I've told you, it was supposed to be a birthday gift for you!" Dorothy defended herself.

"And I told you I appreciated the thought but you know I drink from animals and our rather unorthodox family situation is _not _something you tell strangers especially ones who are as high-strung as that woman was." Gail explained seriously.

"I understand, okay? Can we go now?" Dorothy implored looking at her mom with a disgruntled look.

"Yes, yes." Gail assured as she parked the car and held Dorothy's hand as she walked her daughter to her first grade classroom.

* * *

Dorothy looked around curiously and slightly nervously as she took in her new school as she and her mom walked down the school hallways. She watched as other parents walked their kids over to their classrooms and she almost felt normal for a moment. Like her mom wasn't a vampire and they were both just ignorant humans. A mother just dropping her daughter off at school like anyone else. Dorothy didn't like it, she _wasn't_ like other kids. She knew about the magic and monsters of the world. She had hated kindergarten everyone else was so boring. She talks about blood and they freak out. She wanted a friends but she wanted one like Lexi was to Stefan or Miss Abby had been to Momma before she left. She wanted a supernatural friend but for Momma she would pretend to be normal like she wanted.

"Alright," Gail sighed and dropped to her knees when they reached her classroom and looked at her daughter, "remember what I said earlier. Have a great day my little Doe. Also try to make a friend. I love you." she said emotionally as she pulled Dorothy in for a hug. Dorothy hugged her back and said, "I love you too, Momma. I'll see you later!"

Dorothy then stepped out the hug and hurried down the hall until she was out of her mother's sight.

Gail really hoped Dorothy would make some friends this year. After the blood incident in kindergarten, the other children avoided her. Dorothy may have said she didn't like any of them anyway but Gail could tell that being the social pariah of her kindergarten class upset her. Gail may have gone out of her way to compel the staff member that created the schedules to make Dorothy's first class to be filled with children who didn't know about that in a way to get her daughter a fresh start with a bunch of kids her age. Gail didn't want Dorothy to grow up friendless.

* * *

Dorothy looked around curiously as she took in her first grade classroom. The room was very colorful. The desks were meant for four people together meaning Dorothy would have to sit with three other people which she didn't mind as long as they weren't mean or annoying. She was a bit bummed by the fact she'd have to sit by the teacher's desk if she wanted to look out the window. She decided it was worth it and sat in the seat right next to the teacher's desk and right in front of the bookshelf.

"Hello everyone, I'm Mrs. Gould," a pretty redheaded woman introduced herself with a smile as she walked into the room after the bell rang and then continued saying, "I see you all have picked seats for yourselves but I had an idea since this is an even number classes to have a buddy system. Everyone please get up and stand in the front of the class. When I call your name for attendance I'd like you to tell us one unique thing about yourself and then I'll tell you were to sit and whomever is to next to you will be your buddy for the year."

"Danielle Ainsley." Mrs. Gould started and Dorothy zoned out until she heard her own name.

"Dorothy Salvatore?" Mrs. Gould asked.

"That's me." Dorothy called out.

"Please tell us a unique fact about yourself." the woman smiled.

Dorothy was so tempted to say that she had a vampire mother but she had promised her mom so instead she said, "My favorite animal is a deer."

"They are lovely animals." Mrs. Gould agreed and then informed, "your seat is Table A, Seat 1."

Dorothy was surprised to notice her seat was the one she sat in earlier, she headed over when she noticed who her partner would be, it was a girl with dirty blonde hair and green eyes. She seemed to be scowling to herself. Dorothy wondered why she was mad, maybe she didn't like being here either.

* * *

After attendance was finished, Mrs. Gould asked up to introduce ourselves to our buddy. Dorothy decided to go first.

"Hi, I'm Dorothy!" she smiled brightly.

"Vicki." the girl said curtly with a narrowed gazed as she looked at Dorothy.

"It's nice to meet you." Dorothy responded back remembering her manners.

The girl didn't answer back as she seemed to be now glaring off into the distance.

"Um Vicki?" Dorothy inquired confused and slightly offended.

Vicki didn't acknowledge her again.

Dorothy frowned to herself, she wondered if the girl maybe did know about the blood incident and was being unfriendly because she decided she thought Dorothy was a freak like her old classmates did.

"Girls," Mrs. Gould started as she had been walking around the room speaking to each table and just got to theirs and noticed they weren't speaking to each other, "Why aren't you introducing yourselves?" she asked.

"We did." Dorothy immediately answered not wanting to get in trouble.

Mrs. Gould hummed to herself and asked Dorothy, "Why aren't you getting to know each other?"

Dorothy didn't know what to say and looked at Vicki.

"Vicki?" Mrs. Gould persisted.

"I don't want to be here and I don't want to talk to some random girl." Vicki suddenly said sounding angry.

"Why not?" Mrs. Gould asked calmly.

"I want to stay home with Mattie! Other people are stupid." Vicki explained loudly.

"That's not a nice thing to say." Mrs. Gould reprimanded.

"It's true!" Vicki insisted.

"I'm not stupid!" Dorothy couldn't help but protest.

"Are too!" Vicki claimed looking annoyed.

"Am not!" Dorothy retorted sharply.

"Are too!" Vicki yelled angrily.

"Am not!" Dorothy yelled louder.

"Girls!" Mrs. Gould shouted to get their attention but lowering her voice back to normal to say, "stop behaving so poorly."

"She started it!" Dorothy blamed pointing at Vicki.

"No I didn't." Vicki protested with a frown.

"Did too!" Dorothy growled with her eyes narrowed.

"You spoke to me first!" Vicki argued.

"You're the one who was mean, I was polite!" Dorothy argued back.

"Shut your face, nest head!" Vicki shouted angrily as she pulled on Dorothy's hair hard which caused Dorothy to slam her head into her desk.

"Vicki!" Mrs. Gould yelled sounding appalled but it distant in Dorothy's ears.

Dorothy rubbed her head and her vision swimming as she got lost in a twisted memory.

* * *

_**"You rude child! How dare you interrupt adult conversations!" the bad man growled menacingly as he dropped her mom who eyes were blank and glazed over, he stalked toward Dorothy as she scrambled back terrified and he grabbed her with his monstrous hands by her upper arms and squeezed and that horrible crackling sound filled the clearing and Dorothy shrieked as her bones snapped poking out of her skin at disturbing angles.**_

_**He head butted her with a vicious bloody grin over and over again and she screamed and screamed, blood pouring from her nose down into her mouth and she choked, she was drowning!**_

_**"Nothing better for rude little girls like you." the monster crooned and then he barred his fangs and ripped out her throat.**_

* * *

"_AAAAHHHHHHHHH!_" Dorothy cried as she curled into herself tucking her arms inside her yellow shirt and covering her face with her knees as her hands curled around the pulse points of her neck as a form of protection.

"Dorothy!" someone yelled sounding distressed.

Dorothy curled up tighter, whimpering pitifully.

"Dorothy it's Daddy! You're okay! You're okay." Zach kept repeating as he slowly eased his daughter into his arms as she recognized his voice. She clung to him as tears fell down her cheeks and snot leaked from her nose down her chin, the terror of it all making her cry.

"The bad...the bad...man." Dorothy whimpered clutching her dad's shirt.

"He's gone. I promise. You're okay." Zach soothed as she stroked his daughter's hair.

They stayed like that for a while with Dorothy clinging to her dad as he comforted her until eventually she managed to let him go and ask, "What happened?"

"You got in a fight with a girl and she pulled on your hair and made you fall forward and bump your head on your desk. It...it made you remember your nightmare." Zach explained quietly.

"Where are we?" Dorothy asked sounding tired.

"The nurse's office." Zach informed.

"Did anyone see?" Dorothy asked fearfully.

"Dorothy-" Zach started sounding both compassionate and scolding but she interrupted.

"Did anyone see?!" she asked urgently.

"No you just collapsed in yourself, you had your intense... episode here. Only the nurse and myself saw." Zach reassured.

"So to it just looked like I fainted?" Dorothy asked hopefully.

"Yes." Zach confirmed sounding exhausted.

"That's good." she breathed relieved she didn't ruin her chance of appearing normal in front of her new peers, she didn't want to disappoint Momma.

"You know there's nothing to be ashamed of. It was a traumatic thing you went through at just four years old. I'd be surprised if you didn't have nightmares." Zach consoled.

"Hmm." Dorothy said vaguely acknowledging his words.

"Do you want me to call your therapist?" Zach asked.

"No." Dorothy said immediately.

"Dorothy?" Zach questioned.

"Just let Aunt Lexi be. I'll be fine." Dorothy insisted.

* * *

"YOU WHAT?!" Gail was heard screaming as Zach pulled into the driveway with Dorothy as she was allowed to come home early because of what happened.

"I forgot to mention…Damon is back." Zach says with a begrudging smile.

"Uncle Damon?!" Dorothy gasped, she started to run out of the car in a hurry before she paused with a sudden frown and got out at normal pace.

"You're still upset with him, aren't you?" Zach asked as he took in his daughter's look of indecision.

"Yeah." Dorothy admitted as she slowly walked toward the front door and into the house.

* * *

_May 26, 1994_

"Uncle Damon left?" Dorothy questioned sounding confused and hurt.

"Yes sweetheart. He left this morning with Enzo." Zach informed her solemnly.

"He wouldn't leave without me, he promised we go on a lot of road trips together!" she argued upset, her voice sounding shaking as she was on the verge of tears. She had thought he'd never leave without her. She thought he'd always be in her life. Now he'd just left it.

"I'm sorry Dorothy." Zach apologized mournfully knowing Damon's departure was breaking her little heart. She had truly grown very attached to him in the two months he was here. He really wished Gail hadn't warn him away and that Damon hadn't actually listened. He embraced his daughter as she started to cry loudly against his chest getting snot and tears all over his shirt.

* * *

"Dorothy is crushed, Gail." Zach explained upset into the phone, "she cried herself to sleep in my arms. Did you really have to encourage Damon leaving?"

"Yes," Gail stated firmly, "I would have preferred if he had had the decency to say goodbye to her but obviously he is still a selfish prick and he didn't. She'll get over it. She's three years old in a few years she'll forget all about him. It's better this way she doesn't need his toxic presence in her life or Sarah's."

"Damon wasn't that bad Gail." Zach defended.

"He feed off us. He's moral compass was all wrong and he would have encouraged bad behaviors in Dorothy. He's better gone." Gail argued angrily.

"I suppose you're right." Zach conceded redundantly.

"Of course I am. I'm always right." Gail said, smirking to herself.

* * *

_September 8, 1997_

"You two are despicable!" Gail hissed lowly.

"Gail I see you're still don't like me-" Damon started but Gail cut him off.

"Kidnapping a child after killing his parent's is just a new low!" she growled.

"Damon has a little kid minion. I wanted one." Enzo inputted childishly.

The look that Gail shot him would have made any sane man cower but Enzo just smirked at her.

"He's joking." Damon denied quickly as he took in Gail's fury.

"Uncle Damon...who's that?" Dorothy butted in as she walked into the living room and eyed the young boy who looked to be her age who was cowering on the couch.

"Munchkin?" Damon grinned, "look at you, you've gotten even more wild hair than the last time I saw you!"

"I'm six years and 8 months old now." She informed him briskly.

"Where's my warm welcome?" Damon questioned with an eyebrow raised.

"You're not getting one. Now who is that?" Dorothy asked firmly as she stared Damon down and pointed at the boy.

"You're like a mini-Gail." Damon mused as he took in the cross expression on her face that matched her mother's.

"Dorothy go to your room, Damon's not staying." Gail said seriously as she eyed Damon. Dorothy looked at her mom a few moments before reluctantly agreeing but she gave the boy on the couch an angry look which made him flinch causing her to grin triumphantly and then she started to leave but Damon zoomed in front of her.

"Where do you think you're going? Don't you want me to answer your question?" Damon asked frowning.

"Daddy will tell me." Dorothy said simply as she walked around him and out of his sight leaving Damon baffled at her attitude toward him.

* * *

"What's with her?" Damon asked Gail.

"None of your business. I thought it was agreed that you'd stay out of her life." Gail accused.

"I missed her idolization but it seems you've ruined that." Damon stated as he glared at Gail.

"Dorothy is not to be used to stroke your ego, Damon. Stay the hell away from my daughter and leave Mystic Falls." Gail demanded.

"I refuse." he said simply.

"Damon-" Gail started sounding angry but he cut her off.

"It's been a long four years Gail. It was time for me to come home. It is my home by the way. You just married in. Remember that." Damon warned as he flashed out the room.

Gail went to follow by Enzo interrupted by asking, "So how do you raise a kid, Gail?"

Gail turned back and looked at the poor little boy who had no idea what was going on and cursed to herself. Dorothy would have to wait.

* * *

"What's with you, munchkin?" Damon asked casually as he tried to walk into her room and suddenly found he couldn't.

"You can't come in. Daddy changed the house ownership so that I own this room. Just this one. So no vampire can ever get in my room without my invite." Dorothy informed.

"Why did he do that?" Damon asked lightly.

"You're not the only vampire in the world." Dorothy responded smartly.

"Well let me in." Damon requested as he looked at her expectantly.

"No, go away." Dorothy shooed.

"Why are you angry?" Damon asked annoyed.

"You left." Dorothy stated, "stay gone."

"Dorothy, you're too young to already hate me." Damon criticized.

"I don't hate you. I just don't need you in my life." Dorothy corrected.

"That is your mother's words. Not yours." Damon stated confidently.

"You weren't there." Dorothy says looking sad.

"I wasn't where?" Damon asked confused.

"I remember you told me that you weren't a savior. I never believed that you protected me what felt like time and time again. But the one time I needed you and you weren't there." Dorothy mourned.

"What the hell does that mean?" Damon demands but inside he was alarmed.

Dorothy just looked at him with her doe eyes and didn't answer.


	9. Best Friends

TVD The Blood Games

Disclaimer: The vampire diaries does not belong to me. Only the OC, Dorothy I created belongs to me.

* * *

Chapter 9: Best Friends

_July 20, 1997_

Damon grinned darkly with a blood coated mouth as he looked Aaron Whitmore III in his eyes as the man walked through his front door to his cabin. He dropped Ashley Whitmore's bloodless corpse to the ground.

"Hey there Aaron, it's been a while." Damon said conversationally.

Aaron just looked on at Damon in horror.

"Your wife was a lovely hostess as we waited for you to get home but I got a bit hungry and well..." Damon glanced down at Ashley's body and then back at Aaron and he shrugged, "it is what it is." Damon casually stated.

"Damon you started without me? Rude." Enzo scolded as he walked in behind Aaron who jumped visibly at Enzo's appearance.

Aaron finally found his voice, "Where is my son?" he asked shakily.

"Little Aaron the IV? He's in his room sleeping." Damon smirked.

"Please, don't kill him. He's only six years old." Aaron begged.

"Don't worry, I have plans for your son the last descendant of our beloved doctor." Enzo assured with a sinister grin. Aaron did not look comforted by these words but even more alarmed and terrified.

"You know, you brought this on yourself." Damon commented as he gazed at the pitiful looking man.

"Please it was my grandfather not me-" Aaron pleaded but Enzo cut him off.

"You think I don't remember you? You came and watched as your doctors cut me up multiple times over the years and didn't lift a finger to stop them." Enzo condemned as he gave Aaron a scornful look.

"I'm...I'm sorry." Aaron breathed as he walked backwards and then lunged towards a potted plant in the entryway and ripped it from its soil and brandished it as a makeshift stake.

"Are serious?" Damon scoffed as he easily overpowered the man and threw him into the coffee table breaking it.

"You know I could forgive you. If you tell me my name." Enzo commented slyly.

"Your name?" Aaron repeated sounding dazed as he lay on top of the broken table.

"Yes my name. The name of the man you allowed to continue being an experiment when you discovered my existence." Enzo sneered.

"Um...uh...pa-...ugh." Aaron fumbled as he tried to remember Enzo's name.

"I'm sorry I heard a p. What were you about to say?" Enzo asked eerily calm.

"Nothing." Aaron denied quickly.

"Please enlighten me." Enzo insisted as he gave Aaron an expectant look.

"Um...patient 0043." Aaron admitted resigned.

"Wrong answer." Enzo snarled and then lunged at Aaron.

* * *

"Enzo, what plans do you have for the kid?" Damon questioned edgily as they headed up the stairs the house after leaving behind Aaron Whitmore III's cooling corpse.

"What you have your munchkin and I can't have one?" Enzo reflected.

"Only I can call her that," Damon glared and continued saying in a stern voice, "I'm not killing a kid. That's too dark even for me." Damon asserted.

"I'm not killing him." Enzo countered as he walked in the younger boy's room were they left him compelled to sleep.

"Enzo!" Damon hissed annoyed.

* * *

_September 9, 1997_

Dorothy gives the strange boy a nasty look when she sees him sitting at the kitchen table by himself on morning of her second day of school eating Uncle Damon's famed vampire pancakes.

"Who are you?" she asks rudely.

"I'm Aaron." He responds seemingly taken aback at her tone.

"Well Aaron, what are you doing in my house." Dorothy demanded.

"Um...I don't know. Mr. Enzo...I mean Enzo told me that uh he was watching me for my parents." Aaron explained hesitantly.

"What is your last name?" Dorothy questioned cautiously.

"Whitmore." Aaron answers.

"_Oh_." Dorothy mutters in understanding and then turns now ignoring Aaron to get herself some cereal.

"What's your name?" Aaron asks after a time.

"Dorothy Salvatore." Dorothy answers offhandedly, suddenly less hostile.

"Oh, are you Mrs. Salvatore's daughter?" he asks in realization.

"The older one, yeah." Dorothy affirms.

"We're going to be sharing a class together." Aaron informs.

"You're going to be attending Mystic Falls Elementary?" Dorothy asks incredulously.

"Mrs. Salvatore arranged it yesterday. She said I'm going to be staying here for a while, with my parent's being away." Aaron explained sadly.

"Okay." Dorothy mutters puzzled.

* * *

"Munchkin, you getting along with Whitless here?" Damon asked curiously as he walked into the kitchen a little while after Dorothy and Aaron's conversation.

"It's Whitmore." Aaron corrected.

"Not anymore." Damon snickered under his breath as there weren't any more Whitmore's making Aaron, Whitless.

"I'm sorry?" Aaron asked not having heard Damon.

"Munchkin?" Damon badgered ignoring Aaron.

"He's fine." Dorothy answered shortly.

"I convinced your mom to let me drop you guys off at school," Damon informed and then asked, "You ready?"

"How did you get her to agree to that?" Dorothy questions baffled.

"Well she had to go up to Whitmore for a bit and Zach said I could without telling her." Damon smirked.

"That explains it." Dorothy snorts as she gets up from her chair and puts her bowl in the sink. She grabs her backpack from the cupboard and slings in over her right shoulder like sack of potatoes.

"You've grown to have an attitude." Damon frowns.

"Uncle Damon let's just go, come on witless!" Dorothy yells over her shoulder as she walks out of the kitchen toward the front door.

"It's Whitless with an H." Damon corrects as he follows her.

"No my name is Aaron Whit_more_." Aaron stressed.

He was ignored.

* * *

"Hello Dorothy, are you feeling better today?" Mrs. Gould asked kindly as Dorothy walked into class with Aaron behind her.

"I'm fine." Dorothy muttered and then gestured to Aaron, "this Aaron Whitmore, he's a new student." She explained wanting the attention off herself.

"Hello Aaron, Mrs. Salvatore and Mr. St. John explained your situation. We're glad to have you while you are here." Mrs. Gould smiled.

"Thank you, Ma'am." Aaron smiled shyly.

"My name is Mrs. Gould. In this class we have buddies and in the light of yesterday's incident I decided that you should be Dorothy's buddy. Isn't that great?" the woman beamed.

"Cool." Aaron responded.

"Awesome." Dorothy deadpanned.

* * *

Dorothy was uncomfortable with the other kids staring at her. She knew that to them she only fainted when Vicki pulled on her hair but apparently that was enough to warrant gossip. She felt that Vicki- who was now seated on the opposite side of the room- was trying to drill a hole into her skull with how hard she was staring. Eventually as class went on the other kids got distracted and the staring mostly stopped until recess that is.

* * *

"Hey you!" Vicki called at Dorothy who was sitting on one of the swings about to set off.

"Go away, icky Vicki." Dorothy returned as her grip on the chains tightened in her discomfort.

"Don't call me that uh dorky Dorothy!" Vicki replied heatedly.

"That's a weak insult." Dorothy scoffed unimpressed, she'd heard better. Vicki puffed out her cheeks in annoyance before she released a breath and she smiled.

"You got me in trouble with my mom." Vicki said.

"Why are you smiling about that?" Dorothy puzzled.

"None of your business!" Vicki retorted angrily, her smile dropping.

"What do you want?" Dorothy demanded with a frown not wanting to speak to Vicki anymore.

"Mattie said I should apologize." Vicki admitted.

"Who?" Dorothy asked thrown.

"My baby brother. He's the best." Vicki bragged.

"You're weird." Dorothy squinted as Vicki kept switching temperaments throughout their conversation.

"No you are!" Vicki retorted.

Dorothy stuck out her tongue and jumped off the swing and walked away from her.

"Hey wait! I'm sorry that you're so lame!" Vicki calls out with a backhanded apology.

"Stop bugging me Vicki!" Dorothy said over her shoulder as she went to the monkey bars.

* * *

As she crossed the monkey bars she noticed that Aaron seemed to be getting along with the boys of class easily. It annoyed her how easily he seemed to make friends. She also saw that Vicki was talking to other girls and they were laughing at looking over at her. Dorothy frowned deeply feeling like she wasn't going to make any friends this year either.

* * *

"Hey Munchkin, how was school?" Damon asked as he picked her and Aaron up from school.

"It was okay, I made some friends." Aaron answered when Dorothy didn't.

"I wasn't talking to you, Whitless." Damon admonished.

Aaron frowned hurt.

"Fine." Dorothy finally says.

"Did you make any new friends?" Damon inquired.

"No." Dorothy denies.

"What about that Carol? Karen? the blonde girl?" Damon quizzed.

"Caroline," Dorothy corrected, "she's in kindergarten. We aren't friends anymore."

"What happened?" Damon asked with a frown.

"She doesn't like me." Dorothy informed quietly.

"Why?" Damon asked sounding offended on her behalf.

"I scared her. She's a baby." Dorothy said put off.

"What about Sheila's granddaughter?" Damon further quizzed.

"Bonnie is friends with Caroline." Dorothy answered simply.

"You don't have any friends?" Damon pitied.

"No," Dorothy denied quickly not wanting Damon's pity, "I'm friends with Vicki." she lied saying the first name that popped into her head.

"I thought she attacked you?" Aaron inputted sounding confused.

"What?" Damon questioned sharply.

"Don't listen to Whitless," Dorothy scorned glaring at Aaron, "We were playing a game." she insisted.

"But-" Aaron protested but Dorothy cut him off.

"We're home!" she announced as he jumped out of the car and ran into the house, dragging Aaron with her.

* * *

"How was school, Dorothy?" Zach asked as he saw his daughter running to her room by herself as she ditched Aaron in the living room.

"It was okay, daddy." Dorothy informed.

"Did you make any friends, Doe?" Sarah asked curiously from beside Zach.

"Yep, Vicki!" Dorothy lied again.

"The girl who pulled on your hair?" Zach asked doubtfully.

"She apologized and we're friends now." Dorothy insisted.

"Cool!" Sarah grinned.

"Do you want to play dolls, Sarah?" Dorothy offered wanting out of this conversation.

"Yeah!" Sarah enthused.

* * *

"Doe, will I like school?" Sarah inquired as she brushed her dolls hair.

"Yeah it's a hoot!" Dorothy grinned falsely.

"What's a hoot?" Sarah puzzled.

"It's uh...I don't know, something positive. Daddy said it." Dorothy shrugged dismissively.

"Is your new friend Vicki going to come over to play?" Sarah questioned innocently.

"Totally!" Dorothy lied.

"That'll be fun to play with other kids. We don't get to do that a lot." Sarah commented.

"I know." Dorothy muttered guilty. She scared all the other kids away. She was depriving her little sister of playmates. This Vicki lie was going to have to become truth, she couldn't let Sarah down.

* * *

_September 10, 1997_

"Hey Vicki!" Dorothy called as she ran over to the girl in the hall a few minutes before class started.

"What?" Vicki grumbled, evidently not a morning person.

"You're coming over to my house after school today." Dorothy informed not bothering to ask.

"What?!" Vicki asked baffled.

"I made my sister a promise and I can't let her down. I need your help. You'd do it for your brother, right?" Dorothy insisted.

"...fine." Vicki agreed after a few moments of thinking.

* * *

"Vicki this is my Uncle Damon. Uncle Damon this is Vicki." Dorothy introduced from the backseat of Damon's Camaro at the end of the school day when he came to pick up her and Aaron.

"Hey, kids." Damon greeted distractedly as he pulled away from the school.

Dorothy frowned at his lack of reaction, she had expected something more.

"Hi, Mr. Salvatore." Vicki greeted back politely which earned her a weird look from Dorothy who had never heard Vicki be polite before.

"Hello, Damon." Aaron says but he's ignored per usual.

The rest of the ride home is oddly silent as Damon mind seems to be elsewhere and the kids didn't know what to say to each other.

* * *

"Follow me Vicki." Dorothy encouraged as she got out of Damon's car.

"Your house is huge!" Vicki gasped.

"Is it?" Dorothy frowned not used to anything else as she lead her through the front door.

"Yes my house would fit your living room!" Vicki exaggerated.

"That's a small house." Dorothy commented.

"No that's a normal house. You live in like a mansion." Vicki insisted awed.

"Have you seen the Lockwood house? Now that is a mansion. My house is much smaller than there." Dorothy countered.

"I can't imagine." Vicki murmured.

"Whatever, you want to meet Sarah now?" Dorothy asked bored.

"Sure." Vicki agreed trying to shake off her shock.

"You better be nice." Dorothy said sternly.

"I can be nice. I'm helping you, aren't I?" Vicki said defensively.

* * *

"I'm your fake friend right?" Vicki checked as they walked up the stairs.

"Yes. The hair-pulling thing is behind us." Dorothy explained.

"You don't have any other friends? Loser." Vicki couldn't help mocking.

"Neither do you." Dorothy retorted petulantly.

"Do too. I'm not a weirdo like you." Vicki protested.

"Oh yeah. What are those girls names you were talking to yesterday?" Dorothy challenged as she walked down the hallway to Sarah's room.

"Um...I meet them yesterday. It's a friendship in progress!" Vicki argued.

"Uh huh." Dorothy snorted.

"You should be nice. I'm helping you here." Vicki pouted.

"This is Sarah's room." Dorothy informed ignoring Vicki's last comment as she opened her sister's door.

"Doe!" Sarah greeted with a smile from the floor in front of her dollhouse.

"Say, come meet Vicki!" Dorothy grinned as she gestured to Vicki behind her.

"Hi, Vicki! Do you want to play?" Sarah asked beaming.

"Play what?" Vicki questioned curiously.

"Hide and seek!" Sarah declared.

* * *

Dorothy was hiding in Damon's closet when she heard someone enter thinking it was Sarah, she held her breath and burrowed further into his clothes.

"Damon, did you really help Enzo kidnap a child?" a voiced asked exasperated.

"Stefan, tone down the judgement would you?" Damon requested.

Dorothy covered her mouth gasping not having seen her Uncle Stefan in years. He left shortly after Damon to look for him, her mom told her. She quietly pressed her ear against the door to eavesdrop.

"Damon pray tell why did you two decided to do this?" Stefan sighed.

"Enzo wanted raise the kid as a vampire lover as a finally fuck you to our belligerent doctor." Damon explained sounding annoyed.

"That's what Gail said when she called me but you do realize a grand flaw in this plan right?" Stefan asked seriously.

"What?" Damon requested impatiently.

"You two_ killed his parents_. I can't imagine he'll be so inclined to like vampires when he discovers that!" Stefan stressed.

"I don't care what he feels toward me. Aaron is an Enzo problem." Damon dismissed.

"Enzo is not in the state to care for a child, Damon. Aaron will get killed if Enzo had an episode." Stefan lectured.

"How did you know about his episodes?" Damon puzzles sounding shocked.

"Enzo made the effort to call Lexi to talk about them. He's seem to decide she is his therapist." Stefan informed.

"That prick never told me!" Damon complained slightly betrayed.

"Enzo does want help. You two just encourage the other's bad behavior." Stefan explained.

"Shut up, Stefan. You have no room to talk about enabling." Damon snapped.

"Excuse me?" Stefan asked taken aback.

"Lexi enables you into your delusion of no control!" Damon yelled.

"What?! No she helps me!" Stefan denied sharply.

"Whatever, little brother." Damon scoffed.

"Look Damon, Lexi is already trying to convince Enzo to let Aaron go. I'm here to make sure he doesn't lash out at the wrong people. I'm also here to convince you to leave our human family be." Stefan detailed.

"Not this shit again." Damon groaned.

"Dorothy-" Stefan started.

"There's already something wrong with her and it wasn't me. Zach and Gail refuse to spill but I've heard her having nightmares the past few days. Something happened and she's mad at me for not protecting her from something or someone. I can't leave her so upset with me." Damon protested.

"So you do plan to leave?" Stefan checked.

"Yeah. I'm can't stay in this town long. I have other shit to do. But I'll visit and I need to come back to someone who likes me." Damon explained.

"You really think something bad happened?" Stefan worried.

"Yes." Damon affirmed.

"Okay I'll help you, then." Stefan decided.

"I don't need your help." Damon scoffed.

"Gail likes me." Stefan countered.

"Do what you want." Damon dismissed. There was sounds of air moving so Dorothy assumed he flashed away with Stefan following.

Dorothy blinked back tears at the fact that Damon was so worried about her. She thought he didn't care about her anymore. When he had first reappeared, at first she had thought Aaron was her replacement but Damon keep ignored him. When he kept trying to talk to her, she had thought he just didn't like not being acknowledged and missed her fawning over him and thinking he was cool Uncle Damon. But he actually cared about her well-being and wanted to help her. He didn't say it but she still understood Damon speak to understand what he didn't say. Dorothy smiled to herself and hugged her knees to her chest as she let out a relieved giggle.

* * *

"Uh Mr. Enzo I mean Enzo. Do you want to play video games with me?" Aaron asked shyly as he had no one else to play with as Dorothy and Vicki ditched him.

"Video game?" Enzo repeated intrigued as he set next to Aaron on the couch. He had missed out on some technological advancement while he was a prisoner of the Augustine.

"Yeah, this is my game boy that I packed before we left to come here. Dad got me two so he could play with me. I thought we could play against each other to see you got the best score. It's fun!" Aaron explained excitedly.

"How do you play?" Enzo puzzled as he turned the small box-shaped device around in his hands.

"I'll show you!" Aaron exclaimed.

He happily and surprisingly patiently explained how to play the particular game he had chosen, answering all of Enzo's questions as best as he could. Aaron was very starved for attention having been ignored or half listened to since he got to Mystic Falls.

* * *

"It's so weird that you guys have dungeon!" Vicki commented loudly to Sarah as they left that area of the house as Vicki had hid there.

"Is it?" Sarah blinked unknowingly making the same face Dorothy did earlier in response to Vicki's shock.

"Yes! This house is crazy!" Vicki exclaimed.

"It's home." Sarah shrugged.

"So...what's wrong with Dorothy?" Vicki suddenly questioned.

"Huh?" Sarah frowned.

"How come she fainted when I pulled on her ridiculously long hair?" Vicki badgered.

"She said you made her hit her head. Doe is touchy about her head. You shouldn't do that again." Sarah asserted staring Vicki down.

"I won't," Vicki agreed quickly before asking, "Why is it touchy?"

"I'm not telling." Sarah huffed.

"Oh come on!" Vicki whined wanting gossip.

"No. Doe doesn't like people to know. I don't really know, anyway." Sarah admitted.

"Really?" Vicki gasped.

"I don't want to talk about this anymore. Let's go find Doe." Sarah finalized.

* * *

"Found you!" Sarah cheered as she opened Damon's closet door and gazed upon Dorothy who had her head buried in her knees. Dorothy's head snapped up.

"Sarah, took you long enough." Dorothy quipped.

"Are you okay?" Sarah asked frowning worriedly as she looked at her sister's reddened eyes.

"I'm great!" Dorothy affirms and continued saying, "I'm getting my best friend back!"

Sarah blinked shocked.

"Who?" Vicki inquired.

Dorothy just gave a bright grin and didn't respond.


	10. Becoming a family

TVD The Blood Games

Disclaimer: The vampire diaries does not belong to me. Only the OC, Dorothy I created belongs to me.

* * *

Chapter 10: Becoming a family

_September 8, 1997_

"Enzo what the hell do you think you are doing?" Gail asked sternly as she dragged him out into the kitchen leaving Aaron on the couch.

"I told you getting my own minion." Enzo replied smoothly as he brushed Gail's hands off his jacket.

"Cut the bullshit, Lorenzo. Why did you kidnap Aaron?" Gail demanded as she stared Enzo down.

"I didn't want to have to come back to kill him in like twenty years. This continuous cycle that Damon started, it's way too much work. But leaving the kid an orphan is kind of shitty when I don't plan to put him out of his misery eventually-" Enzo explains but is cut off by Gail.

"Never mind the fact that he is an orphan because of you and Damon." Gail inputted sharply.

"Technicalities," Enzo dismissed, "Anyway I had the idea to raise this kid to be a friend of vampires. It's my last final fuck you to Dr. Whitmore. You know corrupting his great grandson to love everything he hated." Enzo grinned satisfied with himself.

"Enzo what is your plan when he eventually finds out you killed his parents?" Gail questioned.

"Not let him find out obviously." Enzo responded rolling his eyes.

"You're an idiot. Oh my fucking god." Gail groaned as she pinched bridge of her nose.

"Rude." Enzo frowned.

"I'm going to have to go to Whitmore and do some damage control. Do not ruin the kid's life any further while I'm gone." Gail warned.

"You never answered me. How do you raise a kid?" Enzo puzzled.

"Try reading one of my parenting books." Gail offered sarcastically before she left.

* * *

"Hello Aaron. I'm Gail Salvatore. You're parents asked me and my family to watch you while they left on business." Gail lied as she bent down to look Aaron in the eyes from his spot on the couch.

"That's what Mr. Enzo said. Do you know when they'll be back?" Aaron asked innocently.

"I don't know yet but I'll tell you when I do. I'm heading up to Whitmore to get some of your stuff. Anything you want? Gail asked kindly.

"No thank you. I packed everything I wanted." Aaron declined politely.

* * *

"Mr. Enzo-" Aaron started as he saw the man walk back into the living room holding a book shortly after Mrs. Salvatore left but Enzo cut him off.

"Enzo." He corrected.

"Pardon?" Aaron blinked.

"Just call me Enzo, kid." Enzo elaborated.

"Okay um Enzo...can I have something to eat?" Aaron requested.

"Sure." Enzo shrugged not getting up from his seat slumped in the reclining chair reading his book.

"Um I don't know how to make anything." Aaron eventually said when Enzo didn't move, eyes glued to the book pages.

"Really, how old are you again?" Enzo asked as he looked up to squint at him.

"I'm six." Aaron answered bemused.

"Times have changed," Enzo muttered to himself feeling old and continued in a louder voice," I guess I make you something then." He sighed.

* * *

"What are you reading?" Aaron asked curiously as he ate his hash browns.

"Book on parenting." Enzo mumbled as he continued to read.

"Why?" Aaron puzzled.

Enzo did not answer engrossed his the book.

Aaron frowned remembering all the times his dad ignored him when he was doing his work. Aaron didn't like being ignored but it did tend to happen to him a lot. He sighed and got up from his chair and put his plate in the trash on his way out the kitchen. He wondered if he could find that curly haired girl and get her to play with him.

He didn't find her but he found a bearded man and dark haired girl watching TV in one of the rooms upstairs it was a baby show that made Aaron frown in distaste but he was bored.

"Excuse me?" Aaron called out to them as he walked into the room. The bearded man looked up at him in surprise from his seat on beanbag chair with his presumed daughter.

"You must be Aaron, right?" the man asked.

"Yes sir." Aaron nodded.

"No need for the sir. I'm Zach and this is my youngest daughter Sarah." Zach introduced himself and Sarah.

"Hello!" Sarah chirped but her eyes were glued to the TV.

"Do you want to watch Barney and Friends with us?" Zach invited.

"Could we watch Rugrats instead?" Aaron hesitantly asked, he hated Barney.

"No Barney!" Sarah protested.

"Sarah, he is the guest..." Zach reprimanded lightly.

"Daddy it's the best part!" Sarah protested with pout.

"I'll just leave you to it." Aaron decided not wanting to start a fight.

"Are you sure?" Zach frowned.

"Yeah I'll just go to my room...um do I have a room?" Aaron asked sheepishly.

"I'll show you one of our unoccupied room." Zach volunteered getting up before looking down at Sarah and saying, "Sarah stay here."

"Okay Daddy." Sarah waved off staring reverently at the purple dinosaur on screen.

* * *

"Hey Aaron while you're here. I just wanted you to know if you need anything. You can ask me." Zach commented before leaving Aaron in his new room.

"Thank you, Mr. Zach." Aaron whispered to no one.

* * *

"Kid, you're going to school with Dorothy." Enzo informed him the next day.

"I am?" Aaron blinked.

"Yes Gail arranged it last night, said something about not letting you fall behind in your schooling." Enzo shrugged.

"Is Dorothy that curly haired girl from yesterday?" Aaron questioned.

"Yep Gail's oldest kid. She's the best thing ever according to Damon." Enzo snorted, laughing to himself about Damon's bragging.

"Okay." Aaron nodded.

"Here I'll make you pancakes, Damon style." Enzo stated and set to just that.

* * *

Aaron was disappointed when Dorothy ignored him and he didn't like the nickname that Mr. Damon gave him. It was mean. Aaron _wasn't_ stupid.

He tried to be friendly with the other boys at his new school and he got along with them well enough but he wasn't really sure how long he'd be here in Mystic Falls there probably wasn't going to be a chance to hang out with any of them. No one wanted to go around the Salvatore house. They were a bunch of weirdos according to the gossip. The Salvatore's just seemed like a private bunch to him.

* * *

_September 10, 1997_

"I guess we have a son now." Gail sighed to Zach over the payphone all the way in Whitmore.

"He doesn't have anyone who could take him?" Zach asked shocked through the house phone.

"Damon killed them all." Gail sighed annoyed.

"No Godfather or anything?" Zach further probed.

"Aaron's parent's only trusted Augustine members with their son and all the Augustine are dead." Gail revealed.

"So it's foster care or our unorthodox family?" Zach surmised.

"Yes , how _has _Enzo been with Aaron?" Gail inquired torn between dread and curiosity.

"Not too bad actually. He's taken that parenting book to heart and now those two are bonding over video games." Zach stated still in disbelief over it.

"The dead parents thing is going to come back to haunt us." Gail warned.

"I know the past doesn't like to stay buried. We will have to tell him they died in some kind of accident and ask him what he wants to do." Zach determined.

"I hate this situation." Gail groaned.

"Me too." Zach sighed.

* * *

_September 21, 1997_

"Hello Beautiful, you finally take time out of your busy schedule to come visit me?" Enzo flirted as he looked at Lexi.

"We talk all the time." Lexi responded with amusement as Enzo's antics, he always made her laugh.

"You voice is not enough." Enzo lamented dramatically.

She shook her head at him with smile before sobering, "Enzo, be serious a moment. Have you thought about what I said?" Lexi asked seriously.

"Yes...I promise that I will tell Aaron the truth eventually." Enzo swore.

"Relying a child to be your saving grace is not fair on Aaron, you know." Lexi lightly chastised.

"So you've told me but it worked for Damon." Enzo replied defensively.

"And Dorothy is a normal well-adjusted child to you?" Lexi asked doubtfully.

"I'd say so whatever is wrong with her happened after Damon left." Enzo pointed out.

"You're not wrong on that," Lexi admitted, "Just don't don't sacrifice Aaron's well-being for your own. From now on Aaron comes first." Lexi explained sternly.

"That's what the books told me. Don't worry I'll be an awesome pseudo-dad. I have no reason to kill anyone anymore and you could be his pseudo-mom you know." Enzo slyly offered.

"You wish." Lexi smirking playfully.

"Oh but I do." Enzo shot back.

"Jumping straight to raising a child together is fast. Buy me dinner first." Lexi countered.

"Sushi at 7?" Enzo asked with grin.

"Sure." Lexi agreed before she flashed away.

* * *

"Aaron we have something to tell you..." Gail started.

"You're parents are dead." Enzo cut in bluntly decided to just say it instead of beating around the bush.

"W-what?" Aaron stuttered confused.

"Enzo what the hell?!" Gail hissed under her breath.

"They died in an camping accident." Zach elaborated seeing that Enzo wasn't going to after saying it so bluntly.

"What...they can't be...mom and dad...!" Aaron rambled anxiously as tears started falling from his eyes.

"I'm an orphan, It's not too bad." Enzo said, trying to comfort the distressed child.

Aaron just started crying harder and ran from the room.

Gail chased after him.

* * *

Aaron shook her off when she tried to pull him into a hug and went into his room to cry alone.

After a time Aaron was able to calm himself down and he started packing his things. He figured that he was going to be sent to an orphanage now that his parents were gone and he wanted his things. He put his game boy away last but not before looking at it wistfully. He was going to miss playing with Enzo who was slowly getting good at playing Mario cart.

He put on his backpack, rubbed at his reddened eyes and headed out of room and down the stairs.

"What are you doing, kid?" Enzo voice called out to him, there was a blonde haired woman he'd never seen before standing next to him who seemed to be holding his hand.

"To the orphanage." Aaron sniffed.

"You don't want to stay here?" Enzo asked with an oddly toned voice.

"I...can?" Aaron asked slowly.

"If you want." Enzo shrugged falsely nonchalant.

"I'd like that." Aaron answered hesitantly.

"Then you will." Enzo smiled.

Aaron smiled back.

* * *

_November 1, 1997_

"Happy birthday, Uncle Stefan!" Sarah cheered as she jumped on him sleeping on his bed. Stefan grunted from the impact.

"Thank you, Sarah." Stefan smiled tiredly. Sarah had taken a shine to him since they'd met. Stefan didn't know how Damon did it with Dorothy. Children were exhausting to be around. It didn't help that Stefan was always on edge afraid his control would slip with Sarah being such a clumsy child.

"I made you something." She smiled shyly.

"By yourself?" Stefan teased lightly trying to make her more confident in her abilities.

"Y-yeah! I hope you like it." Sarah blushed as Stefan opened the envelope and it was filled with various photographs of his family and some with Lexi, Enzo, and Aaron.

"This is amazing!" Stefan praised as he looked at a photo of himself with Damon as they were talking in the study while drinking bourbon, "you took these?" Stefan asked as they were pretty decent for a three year old the angle was just really low which makes sense since Sarah is still so short.

"Yes I burrowed Daddy's camera. I like pictures they show good memories of the people who love you." Sarah explained earnestly.

"I cherish them forever." Stefan stated half-serious. It truly was very thoughtful.

* * *

"Happy Birthday brother." Damon smirked as he walked down the hall with Dorothy hanging off his shoulders.

"Happy birthday, Uncle Stefan!" Dorothy yelled as well.

"Thank you." Stefan smiled as he looked on at them in amusement, he was glad they were back to their playful ways but unfortunately the mystery of what is wrong with Dorothy remained unsolved. Damon eventually heard of the incident with Vicki but Dorothy was tight lipped about why she's so sensitive about hitting her head. Stefan had also noticed and pointed out to Damon that Dorothy no longer looked people in the eyes anymore. Damon pointed out that Dorothy dreams seemed to be very violent. He swore up and down they he never showed her that kinds of stuff regardless of what Gail thought, Stefan chose to believe him. Damon seems to think that Gail and Zach don't know everything that happened to her as Dorothy really doesn't like to talk about herself much anymore. They both knew it happened in December which was next month and they both thought they'd be most likely to answers then.

"Stefan?" Damon nudged.

"What?" Stefan blinked shaking those thoughts away, Lexi would tell him to stop stressing and enjoy his birthday and he was going to try his best to listen to her.

"Wanna go on a hunt with me later?" Damon offered offhandedly.

"For animals?" Stefan checked.

"Yes will do the bunny diet just for your birthday. I will eat that disgusting crap." Damon grimaced.

"Thank you for your sacrifice." Stefan thanked sarcastically.

"Once in a time opportunity, enjoy it!" Damon called over his shoulder as he flashed downstairs which made Dorothy shriek in excitement, she loved it when he when he ran fast.

* * *

"Happy birthday, asshole." Enzo greeted him when he got down to the table for breakfast.

"Happy birthday, Stefan." Lexi grinned at him from beside Enzo. She was sitting very close to him and Stefan made a face. He truly didn't understand what Lexi saw in Enzo. She deserved better but whatever made her happy. He saw that Aaron was sitting on Enzo's right and was eating cereal, Aaron smiled at him. Stefan smiled back.

"Thanks." he replied as he made to make some scrambled eggs, he saw that Damon was already making Dorothy his pancakes.

"What are you going to do for your birthday?" Dorothy asked from her seat next to Lexi.

"Relax." Stefan responded perfectly content with doing nothing all day.

"No party?" Sarah pouted from her position on her Zach's shoulders as he walked into the kitchen with Gail behind him.

"He doesn't like parties, Stefan is a stick in the mud." Damon answered for his brother as he placed a plate of pancakes in front of Dorothy while taking his own and sitting next to her.

"Your kind of parties are not kid-friendly or particularly fun." Lexi commented.

"Whatever Mother Teresa." Damon scoffed.

"Who?" the children chorused.

"She's a saint." Stefan answered as he sat down next to Damon with his eggs and a glass of animal blood that he keeps around.

Stefan ate his eggs as he watched Damon and Lexi bicker about god's knows what while Dorothy argued with her sister about why Barney was a stupid show. Aaron laughed at something vulgar Enzo said. Gail and Zach both talking about someone named Kelly Donovan causing trouble again. But they all ate breakfast together and it was almost like they were this big happy if slightly dysfunctional family.

Stefan smiled to himself, this was happiest he's been in a long time.

* * *

Authors Note: This chapter is kind of all over the place but I hoped you like it anyway. Also Enzo X Lexi anyone? Enxi? Lenzo? Or something better?


	11. Speak No Evil

TVD The Blood Games

Disclaimer: The vampire diaries does not belong to me. Only the OC, Dorothy I created belongs to me.

**WARNING** for violence on a child, child trauma, and somewhat gory nightmares.

* * *

Chapter 11: Speak No Evil

_September 23, 1997_

"Munchkin, why do you have a vervain plant in your room?" Damon questions curiously as he let's her but a tiara on his head and a feathery boa around his neck as he sits at the table in the middle of her room getting ready to drink fake tea.

"Hmm?" she ponders, "well I've taken to gardening. It's fun!"

"Why?" he questions, wrinkling his nose in distaste.

"I really love nature! It's so beautiful and amazing how plants flourish and live on just some sun and water! It's just so cool!" she enthused with a big smile.

"You've grown up to be such a nerd!" he teased with a smirk.

"Am not." She protested, "there are no insults at the table Prince Damon. Now drink your tea and praise me the awesome Queen Dorothy!"

"Now explain to me again. Why am I a prince and you're a Queen?" he questioned perplexed.

"Because Queens are better than princesses! And you can't be a King that be weird because you're my uncle not my boyfriend." She explained passionately.

"Makes sense." He lied not getting her logic at all but willing to roll with it.

"Oh. my. _god_!" he heard someone gasp as the flash of a camera went off.

Damon looked over and saw Lexi with Sarah standing in the open door. Lexi was cackling as leaned against the door frame and took in what he was wearing and Sarah was holding the camera with a grin as she took the picture most likely at Lexi's request for blackmail material. He narrowed his eyes, "Lexi." He growled.

"Princess Damon." She mocked and then grabbed Sarah and ran away.

"It's Prince!" Dorothy yelled after her.

Damon moved to follow Lexi but Dorothy stopped him, "Tea's not over yet." She pouted.

He sighed and sat back down, "You're so dead Lexi." He muttered lowly.

* * *

_September 27, 1997_

"Dorothy are you alright?" Stefan asks as he notices that Dorothy avoids his eyes throughout their entire conversation.

"I'm fine." she frowns as she looks over his shoulder.

"You know you can tell me anything right?" he says gently.

"No offense Uncle Stefan but no." she snorts, "anyways shouldn't you be playing cops and robbers with Sarah?"

"Yes it seems that I'm Sarah's favorite uncle." Stefan comments with a wily grin.

"She has poor taste." Dorothy teases.

Stefan laughs but he make a note in the back of his mind to tell Damon what he noticed of her aversion to eye contact which was something she didn't have before.

* * *

_October 1, 1997_

"Damon stop poking your nose where it doesn't belong!" Momma hissed at Uncle Damon.

"Why?" he challenged.

"Dorothy is _my_ daughter! Her life is none of your business!" Gail yells.

"Gail need I remind you that I do what I goddamn please and Munchkin is my great niece and that makes her my business!" Damon shouted back.

"You should have died a hundred years ago. Dorothy could have had a normal life and could have avoided all this supernatural bullshit! She was getting better and then you show up and she's suddenly back to misbehaving and acting like a wild child!" Gail ranted furiously.

"It's called having fun Gail, why don't you try it sometime." Damon retorted sharply.

"Jumping off a roof is not fun! It's dangerous!" she shrieked.

"I caught her Christ, calm down would you." Damon condescends.

"Damon you'll-" she started.

"Damon you'll ruin her life," he mocks in a high pitched voice, "I'm truly sick of hearing that."

"It's the truth!" she exclaims.

"Why is it only me that is the horrible influence?" he asks, "you're a vampire too. More like a freaking banshee nowadays but you're not perfect Gail."

"I know that but I-" she says but Damon cuts her off.

"What you think you're a better person than me? Please just wait for the day that Zach dies on you and you tell me how'd you feel after losing the love of your life." Damon retorts.

"You're an asshole." she growls.

"Yeah I am," he acknowledges, "but I do make a good point from time to time."

"I'll never like you." she states.

"I don't care Gail. You're opinion means little to me." Damon scoffs.

"I see." Gail murmurs, "I suppose that you think, you'll manage to find out what happened to Dorothy while me, her mother could not?"

"Yes I do." Damon confirms.

"Asshole." she repeats but she leaves him alone after that.

* * *

_October 10, 1997_

"This is your brother?" Dorothy asks Vicki as she had come over to the Salvatore Boarding House to play again but she had insisted that she bring her brother along this time.

"My name is Matt." The boy introduced himself.

"Hi Matt, I'm Dorothy," she says and the gestures to her left side, "this is Aaron," she then gestured to her right, "and this is Sarah."

"Do you like video games?" Aaron asked the younger boy eagerly.

"They're okay," Matt shrugged, "I prefer sports though."

"We could play football!" Enzo says as he appears out of nowhere scaring the kids.

"Enzo... leave the kiddies be." Damon lectured as he also appeared and tried to dragged his friend away.

"Football would be fun." Matt says.

"That's a boy game." Vicki says scrunching her nose in distaste.

"It doesn't have to be." Lexi countered as she rounded the corner with Stefan at her side.

"Aren't they all a bit too young and small for us to play against them?" Stefan asked then.

"The teams will be me, Aaron, Matt, Damon, Dorothy, Lexi and then Stefan, Sarah, Vicki, Gail, and Zach." Enzo decided ignoring Stefan.

"That's not even and now Zach and Gail are going to play?" Stefan remarked.

"I'll sit out and referee so it'll be even." Lexi offered.

"I'll get Zach and Gail." Enzo grinned.

"He just took over everything." Dorothy complained.

"Let's just let Enzo be happy Munchkin." Damon says with a sigh.

She pouted but relented.

* * *

Dorothy stared mesmerized at the blood on her hand as it feel from her broken nose from Vicki accidentally punting the football into her face.

"Dorothy?" Damon frowned as he noticed the odd look on her face.

"Hmm?" she vaguely acknowledged, "I'm fine. Just give me some blood."

"Okay..." Damon drawled as he eyed her and bit her wrist and she drink it and her nose was healed.

She licked the blood off her lips and grinned at Damon and he felt that this was vision of the future and she'd make such an expression at him a lot if she did end up as a vampire later in life.

He grimaced back, the thought of her being a vampire giving him mixed feelings.

* * *

_October 18, 1997_

Dorothy curled into a tight ball and released shuttering breaths after Enzo jokingly pushed down her head when she made a teasing remark about his sanity.

"Dorothy?" he asked concerned when he observed her position and the sounds she was making. She didn't respond.

"ZACH!" he yelled panicking, he was worried he broke the kid.

"What's the matter?" Zach asked he rushed into the living room from the kitchen. He saw Dorothy and instantly dropped to his knees and slowly drew her into his arms and she slowly but surely clung to him and he helped her focus on her breath but encourage her to count his breathing patterns. She eventually calmed down but kept her head buried in her dad's chest.

"Enzo what happened?" Zach asked calmly.

"She was being a smart ass and I just pushed on her head and she freaked!" Enzo explained defensively.

"Dorothy does not react well to people messing with her head. Do not do such a thing again." Zach cautioned as he raised himself up and carried his daughter to her room.

Enzo nodded quickly but frowned, he had to tell Damon what just happened.

* * *

_December 23, 1997_

"Happy birthday!" everyone yelled as Dorothy walked into the house after being distracted by Damon all day. She stared with wide eyes as she looked at everyone from Momma, Daddy, Sarah, Stefan, and Lexi to Enzo, Aaron, Vicki, and Matt. She looked back at Damon and he smirked and said, "Happy birthday Munchkin."

"Thanks guys." She grinned brightly. She'd thought her birthday wouldn't be celebrated anymore after the disasters of past years.

* * *

At the end of the day Dorothy looked at all the pictures that Sarah took as she decided that was now her job to take all the pictures, claiming they were for the memories.

Zach and Gail hugging Dorothy with smiles on their faces.

A blindfolded Dorothy chasing Enzo with a donkey tail with a metal pin on the end.

Vicki and Dorothy smiling at the camera with confetti in their hair.

Matt, Aaron and Dorothy throwing water balloons at each other.

Dorothy jumping on Stefan's legs with Vicki as they knocked him over which made him land on a table which broke.

Dorothy who had frosting all over her face, sitting on Damon's shoulders as she ate her cake getting pieces of it in Damon's hair who was eating his own cake with a carefree smile on his face.

Enzo and Dorothy making funny faces at each other with Enzo going cross-eyed and sticking his tongue out and Dorothy exaggerating her nostrils and frowning heavily with widened crazed eyes.

Damon, Stefan, Gail, Lexi, and Enzo all with fake vampire teeth in their mouths smiling hugely.

Lexi and Dorothy giving peace signs at the camera while in the background Damon and Stefan were both tied up with left over ribbed from the presents. Both guys had glares on their faces.

Dorothy, Vicki, Matt, and Aaron all sprawled out in ridiculous positions in sugar comas on the floor.

Zach carrying an unconscious Dorothy up the stairs toward her room.

It had been an awesome day.

* * *

When Dorothy woke up again from one of her nightmares, she made a decision.

Dorothy had been thinking about this for a while. She knew that Uncle Damon and Uncle Stefan had been trying to figure out what had happened to her for months. She had promised herself she'd never tell but she wanted Momma to stop being so mean to Uncle Damon for something he never did. He never killed anyone in front of her. He fed but he never killed.

She hated the thought of anyone messing with her head, it terrified her but if it would get them all the stop treating her like an invalid and just let her move on from it all like she wanted maybe they would just stop. Aunt Lexi always said that talking about her problems always made you feel better. Dorothy didn't think she could explain everything without crying so...so... she'd just let them look at her memories.

She'd let Uncle Damon do it and he could tell the others.

* * *

"Uncle Damon?" Dorothy asked as she walked into his room late that night.

"Yes, birthday girl?" he smiled from his position laid out on his bed.

"I want to show you something." She told him.

He gave her a curious look but got up from the bed and listened to what she said.

* * *

_December 6, 1995_

Dorothy frowned as her Momma fussed over her. Yesterday a strange vampire attacked her Momma and she thought Momma should be the one fussed over not her. Dorothy was a big girl it would take more than some mean old vampire headbutting her to scare her!

Dorothy finally managed to get away from her Momma's suffocating mothering around noon and she went outside to explore the forest surrounding her home with her hello kitty binoculars around her neck. She loved nature and enjoyed looking for deer frolicking in the greenery. Dorothy made sure to follow the marked path her Daddy had set up for her so she could get back home as she went deeper in the snow covered trees where the deer liked to hang around away from the humans.

She managed to spot a fawn and put her binoculars to her eyes as she observed the beautiful creature as she chewed on some twigs. She was _so _cute!

When the fawn suddenly stopped and she looked spooked and she quickly darted further into the trees. Dorothy frowned in disappointment and confusion. She had wanted to keep watching, she wondered what scared her.

She started making her way back home when suddenly something tall appeared out of nowhere right in front of her. Dorothy stumbled back, startled and fell on her butt and got snow all over her jeans. She looked up and recognized the man as the mysterious vampire. Dorothy glared at him remembering how mean he was from their last encounter.

"Go away, you're mean." Dorothy said frowning heavily.

"You truly possess no manners, do you child?" the man commented sardonically, "nevertheless you'll suit my purposes just fine."

"What?" Dorothy asked confused.

"_You will spy on all the little brown-haired and brown-eyed girls and report back to me if you notice if people are drawn to these children and if they seem to strongly resemble this woman. You will tell no one of this arrangement_" Mikael compelled her and shoved the picture of Katherine from the late 1800s into her hands.

"I will." Dorothy intoned blankly and then blinked, "how can I be compelled, I drink vervain!?"

"I had your families stash sabotaged yesterday after I attacked your mother. You Salvatore's are part of a long game and killing you would not be in my best interests." Mikael vaguely explained.

"What?" She repeated lost.

"I'll check in a few days. You better have something by then child." Mikael warned and then he was gone.

* * *

_December 9, 1995_

Dorothy had unwillingly done what the man asked. Her Momma seemed to think she was finally trying to make friends with kids her own age on her own and she was thrilled. It'd been three days since she'd seen the man but she had eavesdropped on her Momma's phone conversations with her friend Miss Abby and knew that she's been hanging out with him. So she knew he was still around.

She did her best to pretend that everything was normal so her family wouldn't worry about her and she couldn't tell them if she wanted to because of the compulsion.

Dorothy was once again outside but now she was just cloud-watching in the backyard amusing herself by pointing out to herself the different animals the clouds looked like. Daddy, Momma and Sarah were all inside the house, they were supposed to be playing hide and seek but Dorothy got bored with hiding under the couch and ventured outside.

She jumped slightly when the man's face entered her line of vision as he loomed over her laid-backed form.

"Child." he greeted gruffly, "what do you have for me?"

"My name is Dorothy." she corrected annoyed at how he never called her by her name.

"_Child _do not make me repeat myself." Mikael warned with a frightening look on his face.

"Uh well..." she gulped, "there are a lot of girl's who could look like Miss Katherine. I haven't been allowed to leave the house much because Momma is afraid of you. But this is a list of girls I've met who have brown hair and brown eyes." Dorothy explained quickly as she gave him the piece of paper which had her Intel that she'd taken to carrying around with her.

The man took the piece of paper and looked over it with a blank look on his face. After a view moments he spoke sounding displeased, "This is just a list of names on brown haired and brown eyed girls who are under the age of six who live in Mystic Falls, which I have already managed to gather myself. This is all you have?"

"Yes." Dorothy answered honestly.

"How...disappointing." Mikael intoned as he gained a stony expression and moved toward her with menacing intent.

Dorothy scooted back from him and recklessly asked, "Why do I have to do this?!"

"Why?" the man repeated in an amused tone as he leaned back, "child you don't know your family history do you?"

"You mean Uncle Damon and Uncle Stefan?" Dorothy questioned confused.

"Think much further back." Mikael suggested.

"Mean old Granduncle Gius-guis-eppe?" she asked stumbling over his hard to pronounce name.

He just shook his head and said, "You are related to someone of great importance which makes you important by association."

"Who?" Dorothy asked clueless.

"You'll find out eventually." he answered cryptically.

"You're so creepy." she commented thoughtlessly.

"Watch your tongue, child less you lose it." He snarled.

"Sir yes sir." She nodded quickly, saluting him.

"You mock me? Do you not recognize a predator when you see one?" he asked agitated.

"Vampire's aren't that scary. I'm related to three of them." Dorothy dismissed.

"You are a truly foolish child." The man breathed and then he was gone.

* * *

_December 10, 1995_

Dorothy held her Momma's hand as they walked through the grocery store. Momma was planning to make lasagna for dinner tonight. It was Daddy's favorite and Dorothy's too.

"Momma...can we get ice cream for dessert too?" Dorothy badgered.

"Why not?" Momma agreed as she smiled down at her daughter.

They head over to the frozen section and Dorothy's eyes widen in surprise when she saw the mean man lurking by the popsicles. Momma grip on Dorothy's hand tightened when she too spotted the man. Momma casually pulled Dorothy behind herself as she made to quickly leave the aisle. But the man was faster and he was suddenly in front of Momma and he smiled at her kindly, "_You will not run. We are old friends. You are not scared and you will follow me." _He compelled her.

Dorothy was stunned when Momma grip on her hand loosened and she smiled back at the man and did as he said. Momma was a vampire. Vampires can't compel other vampires, Uncle Damon said so!

"How?" she breathed as her Momma dragged her after the man who was swiftly leading them out the store.

He didn't answer as he lead them behind the store by the dumpster.

"Momma we've got to go." Dorothy urged as she pulled on her mother's hand.

"Go? Why would we? He's an old friend of mine." Gail dismissed her daughter's concerns and dragged her further toward the dumpster.

"_Gail bite your daughter_." Mikael suddenly compelled her.

Gail did so without flinching and Dorothy screamed, "Why?!"

"Today I'm going to be teaching you a lesson." The man explained as he dragged Dorothy away from her mother's teeth.

"Gail go feed for what you are hungry for." Mikael compelled again as he held Dorothy tightly in his arms.

Gail lunged at Dorothy with her vampire face out, obviously wanting to taste her daughter's blood again. Mikael easily dodged her while still holding Dorothy. He then threw Dorothy into the dumpster away from himself and Gail followed and jumped on top of her daughter and bit her neck. Dorothy shrieked in pain.

Mikael ripped Gail off which caused Dorothy to lose a chunk of her neck. Dorothy gasped in agony and fear as she started drowning in her own blood. The man just watched her struggle as he held a rabid snarling Gail in his arms who fought to finish what she started.

Dorothy's vision was going dark and she felt so cold and she lost awareness of her surroundings and then next thing she knew, she was looking in the face of the man again. He had his wrist to her lips as he healed her wound with his blood. Her Momma was unconscious on the ground.

"Do you understand now child?" he asked patiently.

"You...you are a bad man!" Dorothy rasped.

"No your mother is always fighting the urge to rip out your throat. She's a monster." He corrected.

"No you are!" Dorothy insisted as she tried to shove him away from her.

"Vampires are not creatures you should care for." The man continued explaining ignoring her previous comment.

"Go away!" she cried shoving at him desperately, "GO AWAY!"

"You'll thank me one day." He says before he grabs her chin and looks into her brown eyes and says, "_Sleep_."

* * *

_**A blonde haired man with a vampiric face snarls and he grips a woman by her hair pulling her head back which leaves her long neck exposed and vulnerable, the man barres his fangs and savages rips out her throat which causes blood to gush from her neck as she releases a pitiful whining sound as she dies from the brutal wound. The man throws her body away from his carelessly and he vanishes into the night.**_

_**A brown haired man laughs manically as he tears through an old fashioned looking town and brutally feeds off and kills the townsfolk. Body parts are thrown around randomly and blood fills the streets. It's devastating. "Sorry Darling." the man mockingly croons as he drains his last victim and drops him on the ground and decides crushes his skull with his foot getting brain matter and blood on his boots. **_

_**A blonde woman snarls as she throws a grown man out of a balcony window. There is a horrifying crunch as his bones break from the fall. She jumps after him and sits on his back and twists his neck sharply so his eyes face her and she looks into his dead face and she laughs cruelly, "Now who's the foolish one!"**_

* * *

Dorothy wakes up choking on her own tears as what she saw was so frightening. She noticed that the man had moved them and they were now on the front lawn of the Salvatore boarding house. But the man was gone. She laid in a ball in the grass next to her Momma's unconscious body. He was so scary and man and just terrible. He made her dream awful horrific things. He made Momma hurt her and drink human blood when she never wanted to. He was the monster not Momma never Momma.

Gail woke up confused with a sore neck and a lovely taste in her mouth that made her feel strangely sated but then saw her daughter having a break down on the front lawn and she got distracted. She scrambled to get up and rushed to her side, "Dorothy what's the matter?!"

"Th-the bad man." She sobbed.

"Who?" she demanded.

"The man w-wh-who _hurt _you." She choked out, struggling to properly explain, the compulsion limiting her.

"The mysterious vampire?" Gail asked the only time she remembered getting hurt was in the park.

"_Yes_." She strangled out.

"Oh honey. He won't hurt you I promise I'll protect you." Gail vowed.

But Dorothy felt no comfort from her words knowing her could just compel her Momma to hurt her again. Momma didn't seem to remember what happened at the grocery store which was terrifying. She had a feeling if Uncle Damon or Uncle Stefan were here they'd suffer the same fate of being compelled. Also the memories he shared were so gory and scary of her of those other vampires. Vampires could be monsters but the bad man was the only monstrous vampire had personally she met. Her family would never do what he has. Dorothy would have to protect them and herself from the bad man at any cost. She never tell them the truth about him. He'd just kill them.

* * *

_December 15, 1995_

"Th-there's a vampire girl hanging around the Gilbert's house." Dorothy hesitantly informed the bad man as she put as much distance between them as she could. She cradled a pencil in her hand that she casually played with but was ready to use it as a weapon if she had to. Dorothy continued to search for information for the bad man as way to avoid his "lessons" again. She knew he'd show back up again and she was right, he reappeared five days after the grocery store incident when she was once again outside drawing a blue bird that she'd seen out her window.

"She's one of mine. Anything else." He requested briskly.

"Elena Gilbert...has brown hair and brown eyes." She whispers.

"What about her facial features?" Mikael questioned.

"They have similar noses but she's still a baby." Dorothy timidly admitted.

"You're scared of me," he observed with a dark smirk, "Good you should be."

"That's all I know." She whimpered as she gripped the pencil tighter.

He grabbed one of her curls and pulled her head toward him and she jerked back instinctively. He smirked darkly, "you're still quite rude child."

"I'm sorry." She squeaked curling into herself.

"Elena Gilbert I'll keep an eye on her." He ponders to himself and then he straightened releasing her hair and disappeared.

Dorothy released a shaky breath and rushed back inside her house.

* * *

_December 23, 1995_

"Happy birthday, Doe!" Momma cheered as she woke her up that morning with breakfast in bed, it was waffles with whipped cream and strawberries and chocolate milk.

"Thank you Momma!" Dorothy grinned, she was determined to enjoy her fifth birthday. The past month had been very scary and stressful but today would be awesome, she would make sure of it.

"Doe!" Sarah screamed as she rushed into her big sisters room with a big grin on her face with Daddy on her heels.

"Happy birthday!" they both said.

"Thanks!" she laughed.

Yes today would be a good day.

* * *

"Dorothy hi! I got you the best present ever!" Caroline enthused to her. She had arrived with her mom for the small party that Dorothy's Momma and Daddy had put together.

"Come on Caroline!" Dorothy encouraged as she dragged he blonde up to her room to play while they waited for Bonnie to show up with her mom.

"Can we play with your dollhouse. Can we? Can we?" Caroline badgered but she didn't wait for an answer and started rummaging through Dorothy's toy trunk for the barbie with the pink ribbon which Caroline had declared as hers ages ago.

"I guess we are." Dorothy deadpanned as she moved to get her Bambi stuffed animal.

"I want to play with barbies not with stuffed animals!" Caroline protested as she shoved a barbie with a blue ribbon in Dorothy's face.

"It's my birthday. I want to play little red riding hood!" Dorothy insisted.

"Fine." Caroline pouted as she threw the doll somewhat aggressively back in the trunk. She grabbed the Ken doll and a wolf stuffed animal instead, "You can be the grandma!"

"I'll be right back then." Dorothy says.

When she comes back she sees that Caroline had meticulously arranged the toys so they could play the game the proper way as Caroline liked to say. Sarah was with her and was holding the Ken doll it seemed she'd be the woodsman.

"I'm ready." Dorothy grinned.

"Okay ahem," Caroline coughs as she gets into character and then says in a high pitched voice as she held the wolf toy, "Granny it's Little Red. Can I come in?"

"Of course, my dear." Dorothy agrees in a frail old lady voice.

"Thanks Granny." Caroline responds and she pushed the wolf inside the dollhouse's front door.

"My Little Red look how big you've gotten!" Dorothy exclaims.

"I'm a growing girl Granny, hey would you mind if I had a snack?" Caroline asks.

"Sure dear." Dorothy smiles.

"Okay I'll just eat you!" Caroline growls as she throws the toy at Dorothy's face. Dorothy dramatically falls over and screams. Red stuff that looks like blood suddenly starts going everywhere which makes Caroline scream as it gets all over her and Dorothy grabs the wolf and does a dark deep voice and says, "Die Granny die. Let me drink your blood and watch you perish in the deepest parts of hell!"

Caroline screams again and runs out the room. Sarah just laughs at her sister antics, she licks the red stuff that got on her thinking it was ketchup but it wasn't.

"Is this Momma's storage animal blood?" she gasps.

"I was making it authentic." Dorothy defends herself.

* * *

"Mommy!" Caroline wailed as she rushed into her mom's arms, interrupting her conversation with Gail and Zach.

"Caroline what's the matter?" Liz asks concerned.

"Dorothy sprayed me with blood!" Caroline cried.

"Honey it's just ketchup-" she starts as she wipes some of the red liquid on her finger and licks it but it doesn't taste like ketchup it tastes like actual blood, "Dorothy!?" she exclaims concerned the girl actually hurt herself.

All the adults rush upstairs and find Dorothy completely unharmed but she holding a water bottle filled with blood.

"What?" Liz gasps.

"Dorothy, you don't mess with that stuff how many times have I told you." Zach quickly scolded, "that's Daddy's hunting stuff."

"Hunting." Liz echoed.

"It's a trap for the you know what. It's animal blood." Zach explains quickly giving Liz a partial truth.

"Oh...you shouldn't leave that stuff lying around." Liz criticized.

"It's my bad." Zach agreed, nodding excessively.

"Animal blood?" Caroline whimpered before she started full out bawling.

Needless to say Liz and Caroline left. Bonnie never showed.

* * *

"Doe, you cannot under any circumstances mess with my blood supply without my express permission. Liz could have figured out the truth!" Gail stressed as she scolded Dorothy.

"I'm sorry." Dorothy whispered.

"Just don't do something like this again, okay?" Gail begs.

"Okay Momma," she promises and then asked, "Do you think Caroline will stay mad at me? And where's Bonnie?"

"Caroline will forgive you eventually. Bonnie's not coming her mother is busy with other things and can't bring her over. Sheila is busy as well. I'm sorry sweetheart looks like today's just a family affair." Gail explained regretfully.

"Can I still have cake?" she questions.

"Of course you can." Gail agrees.

* * *

_**"Child you are a fool!" the monster snarled as he lurked behind her dead eyed Momma who had strings tied around her limbs. He pulled on the strings and Momma's face suddenly became animated and rabid looking and she lunged at Dorothy.**_

_**Dorothy screamed and ran away, "Momma please snap out of it!"**_

_**Momma body jerked around in strange and unnatural ways as the monster controlled her movements while wearing a sickening grin. Suddenly she moved faster than Dorothy's eyes could follow and savagely bit into her shoulder and snarled at her with blood dripping down her chin. The bad man laughed darkly and said, "Beware the monsters you let in your life."**_

_**He ripped pulled the strings back and Momma's teeth were from her shoulders and she just faded away.**_

_**She laid on the floor in the pool of her own blood as her world went dark but the last thing she heard was just heavy breathing of the predator as he watched her die.**_

* * *

Dorothy woke up screaming and she heard her door burst open and heard her Momma's voice, "Doe what's the matter?!"

She recoiled from her with a shriek, "Stay away!"

Momma tried to stop her thrashing and Dorothy kicked her in the stomach and lurched off her bed and crawled into a ball in the corner of her room and shoved her knees inside her pajamas shirt and wrapping her arms around her knees and she sobbed.

Daddy eventually arrived and managed to calm her down and she feel back into an uneasy dreamless sleep in his arms.

* * *

Dorothy was relieved when her Momma told her the next day that the man was gone but the nightmares remained for years to come. Even when his compulsion broke with his desiccation, she still never told the truth of the pure evilness of the bad man. An evilness she didn't want her family to be hurt by. Aunt Lexi who'd become her pseudo-therapist would never truly know why she dreamed these horrible things. Everyone blamed Uncle Damon and it came to a point where she had to correct them. Dorothy would not let Uncle Damon be seen as the villain in her story. He was supposed to be the hero.

* * *

_December 24, 1997_

It had taken all night for Damon to see all the memories that Dorothy wanted to share. After she was done, she was mentally and emotional exhausted. She just wanted to sleep but she had to make sure that Uncle Damon wouldn't do anything stupid.

"Do you understand now?" she asked tiredly.

"Holy shit Dorothy." Damon breathed as he tried to process what he just saw, "you're _seven_."

"I know." She frowned confused on how that was his take away.

"_**This man is a dead man**_." He snarled sounding livid and he flashed out of the room.

"Uncle Damon!" she called not wanting him to do anything stupid but she was _so_ tired from reliving those memories and she fell asleep.

* * *

Author's note: What a dark chapter to post after not posting anything for three months. Sorry about that. So Mikael is a horrible person, nothing new there. I'm sorry Dorothy for putting you through so much. I hope this dark chapter doesn't lose me any readers. Please tell me if you think I should add any other warnings. I promise next chapter is way lighter and happier. Please tell me your thoughts!


	12. The Path to Happiness

TVD The Blood Games

Disclaimer: The vampire diaries does not belong to me. Only the OC, Dorothy I created belongs to me.

* * *

Chapter 12: The Path to Happiness

_December 24, 1997_

"Sheila!" Damon yells as he banged on the Bennett woman's house.

"What the hell Salvatore, do you know what time it is?! A woman needs her beauty sleep." Sheila grumbled as she cracked the door opened slightly to give Damon a dirty look.

"Where the hell is the vampire who came to Mystic Falls in December of 1995." Damon demanded harshly.

"Excuse me?" she asked caught off guard.

"You heard me! Where is the piece of shit!?" Damon yells.

"I'm not telling you. That man needs to stay buried. But trust me when I tell you he's suffering where he is." Sheila says, seeing that Damon needed to hear that last bit based on how angry he looked.

"Starvation is not bad enough for this asshole. He needs to feel a fraction of the terror he gave Dorothy before I'm satisfied!" Damon asserted severely.

"What are you talking about? Did the stubborn girl finally tell you what her nightmares are about?" Sheila questioned puzzled.

"You know?!" Damon demanded.

"No but I can guess they had something to do with him. He interacted more with her past the park didn't he? I told Gail but she didn't want to believe me" she sighed.

"Yes and trust me when I say he deserves worse than what he's currently going through." Damon growled.

"That may be but I'm not risking him getting free just so you can stop feeling guilty for not being here to protect Dorothy from the man." Sheila says firmly.

"Damn it Sheila." Damon curses furiously.

"Go home Damon and go be with Dorothy. She spilled her guts to you and you leave her to go on a revenge quest? Comfort the child, you dumb ass." She snorts and then slams the door in his face.

* * *

"Wake up Munchkin." Damon urged as he lightly shook Dorothy's shoulder. She had burrowed herself in his covers and made herself at home in his bed.

"Uncle Damon." Dorothy mumbled as she slowly came to as he shook her shoulder, "What?"

"Stop hogging, you've got to go to your own bed, brat." Damon scolded.

"Did you do something stupid?" she asked squinting at him.

"No but I wanted to." he said admitted.

"Aw, I love you too, Uncle Damon." She sleepily smiled before turning back over and going back into her cocoon.

"Munchkin." He complained but he was smiling.

* * *

"You found out what happened?" Stefan asked surprised late that afternoon after Damon finally felt like getting up. Dorothy had ditched him early this morning to hang out with her sister.

"Yes and it's not pretty brother." Damon grimaced, "I'm going to show you what she showed me."

"Dorothy's okay with this?" Stefan checked with a frown.

"Yes she wants me to be her messenger, so brace yourself Stefan." Damon warned before he let himself inside his brother's head and showed him what Dorothy had showed Damon.

* * *

Gail frowned as a solemn looking Stefan came up to her, "Stefan what's the matter?" she asked concerned.

"We found out what happened to Dorothy." He wearily admitted.

"It's bad?" she hesitantly asked as she saw how worn out and depressed Stefan looked.

"Just watch." He sighs and lets her see what Damon showed him.

* * *

"Gail why are you crying?" Zach asked his wife, when he found her sobbing in dungeon all by herself. Stefan had warned him that she'd reserved terrible news but was vague as to what.

"I'm a...a...terri-terrible mother!" She hiccupped as she hugged herself tightly around her middle and leaned against the stone wall. Tears poured down her face and snot leaked from her nose.

"No you're not Gail. You love our daughters." He consoled as he moved to hug her but she dodged his attempts.

"I could I not see that my daughter needed me and I just ignored it! Zach I can't...I can't...I'm so sorry!" she cried as she buried her head in her knees as she curled into a trembling ball of sorrow.

"Gail what happened?" Zach stressed as he hovered around her feelings helpless as his wife's strong composure was shattering before his eyes.

"Just come here." She said gesturing for him to grab her hand, he did and she touched a finger to his temple and Zach saw what Stefan had shown Gail.

* * *

Dorothy frowned as she noticed how ever since she finally revealed what happened to her everyone treated her differently. That wasn't what she had wanted. She just wanted them to understand why she was the way she was now. She wanted to move on now but how could she when Momma was crying all the time and Daddy was suffocating her in his fatherly love and Uncle Stefan and Enzo were tiptoeing around her. Aaron and Sarah who didn't know what happened but could sense the shift in the house were avoiding her. Only Uncle Damon and Aunt Lexi treated her the same.

She wanted to get away from the depressing atmosphere in the house.

* * *

_December 27, 1997_

"Okay the house if bumming me out. The most depressing Christmas weekend _ever_. I say that we all need to cheer up. We still have New Year's to celebrate. New Year's in Times Square is always a blast. Who's in?" Damon asked at dinner a few days after everyone found out about the truth of Dorothy's nightmares.

"New York didn't end well for me last time." Lexi pointed out.

"Let that go already, jeez Lexi," Damon scoffed rolling his eyes, "If it'll make you feel better I swear I won't leave you on top of a roof without your daylight ring again, alright?"

"You better not try and kill my girlfriend again, Damon." Enzo warns giving Damon narrowed eyed look.

"Damon, you're inviting us all?" Stefan asked changing the subject.

"Yes, you people need to learn to stop wallowing and have some fun." Damon asserted.

"You mean ignoring the problem?" Gail scowled.

"Yes, _Gail_." Damon sneered and asked again, "Now who's in?"

"I am!" Dorothy says cheerfully.

"Me too!" Sarah nodded, agreeing with her big sister.

"Why not?" Zach shrugged.

"I've never been to New York before but all the superheroes are from there so yes!" Aaron inputted with a grin.

"Fine." Stefan, Lexi, and Gail sighed in unison.

"I want to do all the touristy things." Enzo stated childishly.

"Alright, see you guys there. Come on Munchkin." Damon says as he leaves the table and Dorothy automatically follows him.

* * *

Damon and decided that Dorothy and himself would ride in his car together and the others could choose their own methods of travel. They had left the house first after quickly packing. Damon wondered how cross Gail was going to be with him for taking Dorothy with him without asking again. He was probably going to be yelled at later but Dorothy was obviously sick of dealing with her parent's guilt and suffocating protection based on the fact that she kept using him as an excuse to avoid them. He was giving her a break.

* * *

Damon and Dorothy bobbed their heads along to a rock song as they both outrageously sung the lyrics loudly and off-key. Damon was driving them down the highway heading to New York. After the song ended Dorothy said, "I love when we sing together it's always so fun!"

"You're going to love Broadway, Munchkin." Damon laughed.

"Can we see the Lion King Musical?!" Dorothy begged.

"We are seeing Dracula just for the irony but sure we can see Lion King too." Damon agreed.

"Yes!" Dorothy cheered and she bounced in her seat.

* * *

_December 28, 1997_

"This is awesome!" Dorothy mumbled with her mouth full of pancakes.

"Yeah this place is my favorite place to get breakfast. Their pancakes are almost as good as my own." Damon endorsed.

"These taste better but yours are cooler!" Dorothy declared.

"That's fair." Damon accepted as he ate his own pancakes with equal vigor.

"Are we seeing The Lion King Musical after this?" Dorothy asked excitedly.

"That's for tonight. I'd thought you'd like to play in Central Park." Damon suggested.

Dorothy nodded with a big grin on her face, "Today's going to be awesome!" she sang.

* * *

Dorothy ran around the famous park with a gleeful look on her face. Everything was so beautiful and amazing!

She got Uncle Damon to push her on the swing set and she jumped off and went flying! She managed to stick her landing but Uncle Damon didn't see because a bunch of ladies were fawning over him which Dorothy found annoying.

"Uncle Damon!" she yelled throwing a clump of sand at his head and then they were having a sand war which made the ladies mad as they were getting dirty and they were causing a ruckus but neither Salvatore cared.

"Be defeated evil doer!" Dorothy cried as she tackled her uncles legs making him fall over, she got sand all over his clothes.

He flipped her off him and she landed in the sandbox with a cackle which scared off the other kids not that Dorothy cared about that.

"I win." Damon declared smugly as he looked down at her prone form.

Dorothy hit in the head with a plastic bucket a boy had left behind, and yelled, "I'll never give in!"

She got up and holding a toy shovel in her fist like a weapon she declared, "On guard!"

Damon held the bucket like a shield, "En garde."

They mocked fought with their chosen weapons until Damon managed to disarm her and swiftly picked her up and suddenly ran with her in his arms like she was stuffed animal.

"Woo!" Dorothy cheered.

* * *

"Getting kicked out of Central Park. Check that off the bucket list." Damon snorted.

"It was fun acting crazy like that." Dorothy laughed.

"It was." Damon agreed.

* * *

"Hakuna Matata, Hakuna Matata!" Dorothy sang along with the actors on stage as she watched Timon and Pumba sing their song from her spot on her uncle's shoulders so she could see better. She had wrapped her arms around her uncle's head and was hugging him tightly. It made him unable to see the play and was slightly uncomfortable but Damon didn't complain as long as she was happy he didn't mind.

* * *

_December 29, 1997_

"Sarah! I saw the Lion King Musical!" Dorothy told her sister when she saw her that morning, her having finally arrived in New York with their parents and Stefan.

"That's so cool!" Sarah screams.

"I know!" Dorothy yelled back.

Damon shot his brother a smug look at Dorothy's praise that Stefan rolling his eyes in exasperation.

* * *

"I have a super fun idea!" Dorothy told Damon.

Damon raised an eyebrow in question, prompting an answer out of Dorothy.

"Let's climb the Statue of Liberty!" Dorothy encouraged.

"Munchkin...that's an awesome idea!" Damon smirked, "Get on my back."

Dorothy automatically did with a grin and held on to her uncle neck tightly as he skillfully and subtly started scaling the green woman. He knew that getting caught by humans would end badly so Damon was trying to be stealthy about it.

When they got to the top and Damon sat on the crown Dorothy asked, "Can you just off into the Hudson river?"

"You sure want to be daredevil today, don't you?" Damon remarked.

"Please it'll be so fun, like flying!" Dorothy pleaded.

"When it's darker out and no one can see us." Damon relented as he maneuvered to hold Dorothy against his side so she wouldn't fall as he land down inside the crown.

"It's such a pretty view up here." Dorothy whispered in quiet awe.

"You know I can hear your mom yelling from all the way up here." Damon commented, "she's mad at me again."

"It was my idea and we're not going down until night time." Dorothy decided.

Damon didn't argue with her and they spent the rest of the afternoon laying on top of the statue of liberty and fluctuating between talking about utter nonsense or about nothing at all.

* * *

Dorothy gasped as she and Uncle Damon free fall off the Statue of Liberty. The wind rushed through their hair and clothes and Dorothy's eyes teared up from the air pressure. Damon held onto her hand as the fell and just before they hit the water he cradled her to his chest and broke the fall for her. He saved her from dying but she still got a bit injured from the massive fall and the impact of the water around her body when she landed.

Damon seemed guilty about this but Dorothy just laughed breathlessly and accepted his blood to heal. It was the most terrifying and exhilarating thing Dorothy had ever done and she loved it.

* * *

_December 30, 1997_

Gail and Zach traded looks as they listened to Aaron and Dorothy argue about whether Spider-Man was a cool superhero inside the comic book store that Aaron had wanted to go to. Sarah was just looking at the posters ignoring the fight. It was getting heated when other customers of the store starting sharing their opinions about the argument.

"I hope Damon and Stefan aren't going to come back to the hotel off the rails." Gail sighed to her husband.

"I'm sure they'll be fine. Though I hope Lexi and Enzo are enjoying their date." Zach remarked.

"I'm sure they'll enjoy date night as much as we did yesterday." Gail smiled but frowned when Dorothy decided to throw a lightsaber, that she had grabbed from one of the shelves, at Aaron's head and Aaron ducked and it hit a random teenage boy in the face.

"Dorothy!" Gail and Zach both chastised.

* * *

_December 31, 1997_

"Aunt Lexi, come help me mess with Uncle Stefan!" Dorothy yelled as she ran over to the blonde who was speaking with a man who looked like a young wealthy businessman. She noticed that that the man had his hands burrowed in his pant pockets and that his face seemed to be carefully neutral and he had a polite smile on his face as he talked to Lexi.

"Dorothy!" Lexi greeted with a smile and then she looked at the man beside her, "Elijah, this is Dorothy Salvatore my best friend's great-great-great-great grandniece," she then looked at Dorothy, "Little Salvatore, this is Elijah my sire."

The man had a muted look of surprise on his face as he looked at her but he greeted her all the same, "Nice to meet you Miss. Salvatore."

"You too Mr. Elijah," Dorothy responded brightly, "Thank you for turning Aunt Lexi!"

"Your welcome." Elijah responded sounding slightly bemused.

"Can I hear the story?" Dorothy asked both Lexi and Elijah. Lexi's sire had completely distracted her from her plan to torment Uncle Stefan.

"My sire story?" Lexi mused, "Maybe when your older. It's not kid-friendly."

"Did your dad try to kill you too like Uncle Damon and Stefan?" Dorothy asked innocently.

"Damon_ really_ needs to better censor the story he shares." Lexi muttered.

"Miss. Salvatore, how did you find out about vampires?" Elijah cuts in sounding slightly disapproving.

"Uncle Damon told me! He's the best." Dorothy happily informed him and then she saw something out of the corner of her eye, "He's back from feeding! I'm going to go get him to help me annoy Stefan."

She ran over to him leaving Elijah and Lexi alone.

"Isn't Damon the Salvatore you dislike?" Elijah asked Lexi quietly as he watched Damon picked up Dorothy by her armpits and put her on his shoulders and he moved at vampire speed through the crowd and eventually out of Elijah's line of sight.

"Yes but Dorothy adores him and he adores her back. It's been a strange few years. But Dorothy has made Damon less of an asshole." Lexi quickly explained.

"A word of warning human children and temperamental vampires tend to end poorly based on my own experience." Elijah cautioned.

"Dorothy has more than just Damon looking after to her. The Salvatore's have become this big family alongside Enzo, Aaron, and myself. Admittedly the kid's been through a lot but she's resilient. She's going to be incredible when she grows up." Lexi smiled.

"I hope so." Elijah smiled as he overheard Stefan Salvatore yelling at his brother and niece. He truly hoped the Salvatore family had a happier ending then his own.

* * *

"Why are you sad?" Dorothy asked bluntly as she ate cheese from a stick that was on the buffet table. Aunt Lexi was now dancing with Enzo and Aaron as both had dragged her away from the conversation she had been having with Elijah and Damon was busy flirting.

Elijah who was standing beside her with his hands in his pockets and was looking at Lexi and her boys with amused and wistful expression on his face, blinked in surprise at Dorothy's question, "Pardon me?" he asked bewildered.

"You're making the same face Uncle Damon makes when Momma and Daddy are being gross and affectionate and when Uncle Damon is remembering Miss Katherine. It's a sad face." Dorothy explained in a matter of a fact tone.

"You are a nosy child." Elijah commented.

"I'm observant," Dorothy corrected smugly, "Do you miss someone too?"

Elijah just looks at her earnest empathetic face a few moments and almost seemed like he was going to answer her but he shook his head and cleared his throat, "Excuse Miss Salvatore."

He moved to leave but Dorothy grabbed his suit leg halting him, he gazed down at her with a small frown and a raised eyebrow.

"I hope you find your happiness, Mr. Elijah." She told him honestly and then let his leg go.

"How old are you?" he questions with a pensive look on his face.

"I turned seven years old a few days ago." Dorothy informed him with a grin.

"You're a rare person, Miss Salvatore." Elijah remarked sounding warm.

"I am?" Dorothy asked, confused.

"You are caring. I hope when you grow up you keep this quality." Elijah says and then he leaves her side, disappearing into the crowd.

* * *

"Thank you Uncle Damon." Dorothy yawned as she leaned against her uncle as they sat on the edge of the Empire State Building and watched the sun rise.

"Don't mention it Munchkin." Damon dismissed as he had an arm around her shoulders to insure she wouldn't plummet to her death.

"You're the best Uncle ever. I want to do road trips with you every holiday." She murmured as she started falling asleep against his side.

"How about every summer?" Damon offered, "Your mom would kill me if I took you every holiday."

"M'kay." She sighed and then she was unconscious.

Damon looked down at her slumbering form and smiled to himself, yeah he'd never leave her life completely ever again. Dorothy was stuck with him.


End file.
